I never told you what I do for a living
by SonicVixen
Summary: Gerard was turned into a vampire almost a century ago and he hates it. He hates it so much that he wished he had died the night he was changed. When he meets Frank, his world starts to change.
1. Chapter 1

It was Saturday night. Normally the streets were crowded because everyone was partying and drinking, but not this night. The wind was howling and the rain was pouring outside. Gerard was sitting against a wall in an alley to find some shelter against the streaming water, as if that was even possible.

Gerard had a craving. A craving so bad that his throat was burning and his head was aching. It was full moon and he knew damn well what that meant. He wanted to hunt.

He took a last sip from his whiskey as he stood up. He pulled his hood over his head. It didn't really matter though, he was already soaking wet. He was cold, but he couldn't feel it because of all the liquor he had consumed this night. He was trying to still the hunger he was having, but it didn't do much, at least not as much as he would've liked.

He started wandering across the empty streets. He was just staring in front of him. Oh this hunger... this intense craving... He fucking wished he could do something about it.

As he was wandering, his sight started to blur. Being half drunk and intoxicated from all the hard liquor and drugs he took, suddenly the smell hit him. It was blood.

His head started to spin. This primal wanting starting to come up to the surface. He was turning into a monster, and he could not help himself.

As he looked to the right, he saw a junk shooting up some heroin.

The corners of Gerard's mouth started to form an evil grin and his eyes started to sharpen their visions. He could see everything. All his senses were becoming extremely strong. You could say that he had the senses of a predator hungry like they have never feasted before.

He started to speed towards his victim, because that was exactly what it was; a victim.

Gerard didn't think twice about it as he sunk his fangs into the neck of his prey. He sucked up the warm fluids that came out of the junk's neck. "Oh fuck, this feels so nice..." Gerard thought to himself. As he sucked up the last drop of blood from his victim, he finally started to realize what he had done. Yes, his hunger was stilled for a moment, but he had made another victim. Again.

As guilty as he felt, the people may never know what he was. He grabbed everything that was left from the body and threw it into the nearest river he could find. "It's only a junk." He thought. "They are the ones without family or friends, they are never going to miss him or report him as missed." He said to himself to comfort his feelings for a little bit.

As much as he was a monster, he also felt guilty about his victims. Yes, they were mostly drunks and nobody was ever going to miss them, but they were people. They were people with lives, lives that they tried to make the best of. Sometimes Gerard wondered how people could go so low. So low that they didn't even had a house or money to buy food. Did they had kids? A wife or a husband? Maybe even parents who were still alive?

He absolutely hated himself for all the murders he committed, but he knew there was not much else he could do. He was a monster, a predator, a vampire. He had to. If he didn't that would mean his own death or going crazy and commit a mass murder. Better one at a time than being caught for murdering whole tribes of human beings.

The thing with Gerard was, whenever he felt bad, he started to use drugs. Not the kind of drugs where you would get a little high. No. he would use drugs so he would forget who he was or what he was.

He never wanted this life. He wanted to live a normal life. He wanted to experience the feeling of falling in love for the first time. He wanted to get married and have kids, and then, when the time was right, die after living a happy life.

But he never got that chance.

As he stumbled to the bar, he looked in the shopping window. He was covered in blood. "Fuck. Me," he thought. "How could I be so stupid?" He could feel some sticky stuff on his face, not making the connection that he just killed someone. The killing had almost become normal.

"Had a nice dinner, handsome?" he heard a woman's voice say. It was Josephine. He hated Josephine to the core, as she was the one who made him to be like this.

"Could you please not follow me every-fucking-where? I don't want to talk to you ever again." Gerard said.

"Oh, I am so sorry sweetie. But you see, I am the one who made you so I feel full responsibility for you. We don't want you to go out and murder innocent people, don't we?" she asked in this most sarcastic, high women's voice you could imagine.

"Just leave me alone." Gerard hissed. And he walked away before he attacked her.

He absolutely hated her guts. He tried to forget about her but he couldn't.

He suddenly got a flashback of his changing. He was rolled up to a ball in a corner, covered in blood. His own blood. He was so disorientated and he was in so much pain that was crying hysterically. The only thing he could see was red. He remembered her giggling throughout the process. She was just plain evil.

She was the person he always hated the most, and now she was the one that he started to become.

Just before he was changed, his father took Gerard with him to Paris to meet a nice girl his father wanted him to marry, Angelique.

Angelique was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. She had this gorgeous dark brown hair that was loosely hanging on her shoulders. She always had a gold locket around her neck. Her eyes were this beautiful liquid hazel colour. When he looked into her eyes, he felt like they could conquer the world. But they didn't.

Josephine had set her arrows on Gerard, and she wasn't planning to give him up to some aristocratic French girl.

Gerard and Angelique had everything planned. The wedding was coming soon and they could not wait to start a living together. To have children.

The night before their wedding, Angelique was fitting her wedding dress for the last time to make sure everything was right. She looked absolutely gorgeous. The dress was champagne coloured and her veil had pearls embroided on it. She looked like she came walking out of a movie.

She had missed her period for two months now, she was sure she was with child. The thought of carrying Gerard's baby filled her with so much joy that she lit up a room wherever she was.

She laid her hand upon her belly and smiled. "I love you so much. I can't wait to tell daddy you are coming."

Suddenly, as she was fitting everything right, she heard something on the outside of her window. She walked towards her balcony and looked outside, not seeing anybody. She enjoyed the view for a few more moments.

She turned around to walk into her room again and she heard a loud thump-sound behind her. She froze.

As she turned around, she saw Josephine standing there. She was staring at Angelique with the most evil and demonic grin she could imagine.

Before Angelique could even scream, she was gone. Josephine had pierced her fangs into her neck and sucked the life out of her. Josephine took her necklace that was so dear to Angelique.

The next day was the most beautiful day in June. The sun was shining bright and the flowers were growing. Gerard had took a bouquet of roses with him, because he knew that were Angelique's favourite flowers.

He knocked on the door. No answer.

He knocked again. Still no answer.

He decided to just go inside. "Angelique? Honey where are you?" he called her as he walked up the stairs.

When he was almost in her room, he started to smell a weird smell he never experienced before. It smelled like... Iron? He couldn't say what it was exactly.

He heard giggles came out of the room, but it wasn't Angelique. This giggles were different.

"Angelique?! What are you doing up the-" he stopped talking as he opened the door. There she was. The love of his life, laying lifeless on the ground in an unimaginary amount of blood. The giggles started to become laughter, and the laughter started to become hysterical. Gerard froze as he felt his heart breaking. The second he saw his fiancée laying on the ground was the moment he knew he didn't want to continue with life any further. Life drained away from his spirit.

"Hi there, sweetie." Josephine said. "Excited for your little ''wedding? Hihihi…"

Gerard turned toward Josephine with an anger he could not contain. He was never the guy who would hurt somebody, but he wanted to kill Josephine this instant. As he tried to attack her, she already had her arms around his neck. She bit him. "Kill me…" he pleaded, but it was too late. The poison already started to flow through his veins. This was the moment the curls up and crawled into a corner, like a dying cat would try to make sure to find a spot to die.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day was a peaceful day. It was Sunday, the sun was shining and people were going to church. It was really warmer than usual for a day in October. He was not the kind of vampire to be discovered by standing in the sun or just exploding in sunlight, but still. You could see that Gerard was... different.

Gerard was really skinny. He didn't want to kill too much people so he tried not to do it that much and that resulted in being underfed. His cheeks were sunken into his skull and he had really tired, hollow eyes. As this was also caused by the lack of food, it was also because of the addiction he had formed in the last hundred years. Gerard could look at you, and you would give him all he wanted just by thinking about it. He was already good with messing with people's emotions when he was still a human. Now that he has been a vampire for a couple of decades, he was getting way better with that. Still, he preferred staying in the shade instead of the sun.

Sometimes when Gerard feels lonely, and that is a lot lately, he looks at Angelique's locket and holds it close to his not-beating heart. It still hurts and the saying that time heals all wounds is merely a lie. It is a fucking lie. He missed her like it was the day of yesterday. He tried to commit suicide so many times, but it never worked. As a vampire, or just merely a monster as he liked to call himself, he was mostly too strong to take the effect of a bottle of pills or some lousy razorblades over his wrists. Even jumping off a bridge just made him come above water fast enough.

His frustration of all the failed attempts became bigger and bigger. It wasn't like he knew any other vampires who were feeling the same as him. He was the only one –next to that awful Josephine- who was a vampire, as far as he knew.

For a long time, Gerard lived as a hermit. He didn't want to face the outside world, scared to see his true face. He tried to consume as less blood as he got, but he got so incredibly hungry that he could smell a drop of blood from miles away. It was driving him absolutely mad. There was this one time that he went to an asylum far back in the woods. He murdered everybody that was present. He often tried to forget the incident, although it was very hard on him.

After Gerard had spent some time wandering through some remote areas in the suburbs of the city, it already became dark. He decided to go to the centre of town where everybody has been busy going out. He decided to walk into a less crowded bar and he walked to a barstool on the corner of the bar.

"One shot of whiskey please." He asked. "Coming up."

While he was waiting for his whiskey, he saw a strange figure walking into the bar. From the point where he was sitting, he could only see his silhouette. After drinking his whiskey like it was lemonade, he and the figure already made eye contact. He could now see that it was a man. A man with bloodshot eyes and dark coloured bags under his eyes. His hair was half long and black.

Gerard knew there was something strange about this particular man and he decided to go up and talk to him.

"Is there something on my face? Can you just stop looking at me?" the guy said as Gerard stopped at his table to talk to him.

"I'm sorry man, I won't bother you anymore." Gerard backed off a little.

The strange man smiled. "Nah dude, just kidding. You want something to drink?" Gerard inspected him more for a little bit. In a glimpse he saw what he thought were fangs. He decided to sit across the man.

"Well, yeah, since you're offering it." Gerard said.

The strange man went up to the bartender to order two more whiskeys. Gerard watched him as he walked up to the bar. He still thought the man had something strange, but he couldn't quite bring home what.

Gerard recognized the look he had in his eyes, because he had the same look as Gerard. He didn't know what to think about that. He found it suspicious.

The man returned with two little glasses in his hands. He put one of the glasses in front of Gerard.

"So, where are you from? My name is Frank, by the way." he looked up to Gerard. That same look in his eyes again. Gerard was a bit startled. He had looked into his eyes but he turned his head away directly. For some reason, he could not get himself to look the man straight in the eyes yet. It just felt uncomfortable.

"My name is Gerard. I am not from around the neighbourhood."

Gerard stared in the already empty glass in his hands.

"Well. Hi Gerard." Frank said. He stared at him for a few moments.

"Well, I am going to a Halloween party tonight, you want to come? You look a bit thirsty."

The moment Frank said that, Gerard froze. Thirsty? Could Frank see what he was? He tried to dodge eye contact with Frank.

"Wha-what are you talking about?" Gerard was starting to get very nervous.

"You look thirsty. Any one of our kind can see that you haven't had proper food for a long time."

Gerard looked up slowly, he still couldn't believe he was sitting in front of another vampire. Maybe that were the strange vibes he got from him.

"Dude, I asked you a question. Do you want to come out to party with me tonight or not?"

"Yes, I will come with you. But, what are you planning on doing exactly?" Gerard asked hesitantly.

"Well, I was thinking about going there, meet up a couple of guys or girls and at the end of the night, drinking them. You aren't used to this kind of regime aren't you?"

Gerard still stared at Frank. He was just re-evaluating everything he told him and what was happening right now. Gerard decided to go with him.

"Okay, I'll come and go with you."

"Nice!" Frank said. "Okay then, let's go!"

They got up from their seats and started to head to the party.


	3. Chapter 3

It was already dark when they arrived at the party. The building was an abandoned factory outside of town. As they walked closer, Gerard could hear the loud music coming out of it.

There were a lot of people. Gerard suddenly started to become very nervous.

"It's quite crowded, isn't it?" He asked.

"Yeah. Awesome, right?" Frank answered. "What's up man? You seem very uneasy."

"I'm okay. It's just that I'm not really used to so much people in one place."

"I think that what you're trying to say is that you are afraid that you may not control yourse-"

"Why don't you try to mind your own business?" Gerard snapped.

"Whoa there, I want to help you. I just told you that I am here to eat. I came here to party too, but mostly to eat."

"Yeah, well, the last time I was in a company of so much people I murdered the whole fucking place." Gerard started to look anxious. It was a little while ago since he ate, so the sounds of beating hearts and the smell of human beings started to bother him a little more.

"It's okay man. I know the feeling. It helps when you drink sometimes, you will get used to it more then. Let's just go in, and if you think it's too much, we will leave."

Gerard still didn't know what he had to think about Frank. He wanted to trust him, but he was a bit hesitant.

Frank started to walk towards the building and Gerard chose to follow him in. As they were walking closer, it began getting more crowded.

"Frank, I don't think that-" Gerard couldn't even finish his sentence as Frank pulled him into a corner.

"You see that girl?" he pointed to a girl with glasses who was standing in a corner. She had straight black hair that was hanging down her face. She had pretty green eyes but she looked incredibly uncomfortable. Being at a party wasn't her favourite thing to do.

"We are going to eat her tonight." Frank continued.

"We?"

"I think mostly you, though. Don't worry, I'll lure her out and when I give you the sign, you can attack." Frank said.

"But don't worry about the blood! You know, the nice thing about Halloween parties is that, even when you are completely covered in blood, nobody notices, because everybody is in costume. You would almost be weird if you were not covered in it." He continued talking.

Before Gerard could even answer, Frank was already going in for her. Gerard could see him starting to have a little chat with her. And that little chat turned to flirting. He could see in her eyes that she really liked him. Just the way she looked at him and fluttered her eyelashes, it was almost sickening. Frank smiled at her and softly grabbed her hand. Her cheeks turned bright pink.

Only the thought of her blood flowing through her body made him ache with thirst. He could almost feel sorry for her. Almost.

Frank took her outside by her hand. As they passed Gerard, Frank gave him a strong glance that Gerard saw as the sign.

He waited for a bit until they were outside, otherwise Gerard thought that it would draw too much he walked towards the exit, he was glad that the warmth and the sounds of beating hearts became less. Gerard was already in a tough place and he was kind of surprised that he contained himself for so long, even if it was hard on him.

What he did like, was the smell of beer. Thirsty for blood wasn't the only thirst he was feeling. He decided that, when they were done eating, he would get drunk. Very drunk.

As he finally came outside, he started looking for Frank and the girl. When he walked a bit around the building, Gerard heard them talking in a very low tone. At least, that is what Frank tried. Gerard heard the girl giggle the entire time.

"Ah, Gerard! There you are! Ruby, I want to introduce you to my nice friend here!" Frank said. Gerard was a bit confused about what he was doing, but he started to trust Frank, especially since he was another vampire.

"Hey Gerard!" she said. Now Gerard could see her from a little closer, she had really vibrant eyes. She had a big smile on her face as she stuck out her hand. "My name is Ruby!"

"Hi there, Ruby." Gerard said softly. He shook her hand.

"So, Ruby, are you planning on doing something tonight?" Frank asked. Gerard heard that the tone in his voice changed. He was not the nice and laid back Frank, this was the voice of a killer. This tone was the kind of change that only Gerard could hear. Ruby didn't even notice. The poor thing.

"N-no, not really. Why? Do you want to hang out?" she said a bit sceptical. She heard it, she must have. She knows.

"Uhm, I'd rather go home, I am sorry." She tried to walk away. As she brushed past Gerard, Frank glanced at him and he knew this was the moment.

"You aren't going anywhere." And Gerard grabbed her with such force that he broke her arm. This wasn't part of the plan, but she was going to die soon anyways, so it doesn't matter that much. The only thing that mattered, is that she was screaming and crying out loud right now.

"Okay, Gerard, just finish her." Frank said, slightly panicking. He was franticly looking around to see if anybody heard her.

Gerard grabbed the back of her neck and pulled her down. As he sunk his teeth in her neck, she stopped squirming and screaming, she was just passed out.

Drinking felt so good. There hasn't been a feeling that felt as good as drinking, since he changed into a vampire.

He hated himself for it, as always, but it was so good.

"Gerard, dude, it's my turn." He heard Frank saying in the distance. Gerard ignored him.

"Whoa. Dude." Frank started pulling on his arm but it didn't help. Gerard started growling at Frank. He was seeing red.

There was blood everywhere. Gerard wasn't exactly discrete this time. As soon as she was sucked dry, Frank started to move to him closely.

"Feels good, right?"

"Yes, absolutely." Gerard said.

"Want to go back to the party, man?"

"Yes, sounds good."

As they walked back to the building, the sound of beating bass and loud music started to become clearer and also the sounds of human beings and beating hearts became more vibrant. It didn't really bother Gerard that bad anymore. His stomach was full and his head was clear. This was going to be a good night.


	4. Chapter 4

Eventually, back at the party, Gerard and Frank decided they should go for a drink. As they walked through the crowd, Gerard got some weird stares and even some compliments, the people not knowing it was real blood. Blood from a girl he just killed.

The music was so loud that you could feel the bass trembling in your body. Frank yelled something to Gerard, but he couldn't really hear it. Gerard could make up out of Frank's message that he liked the party.

As Frank started to drink more and more beer he became a little tipsy. Well, what did you think? He was drinking on an empty stomach, and even for a vampire the effect is that you get intoxicated a lot faster.

After a while, Frank was slurring his words and Gerard lost him, so Gerard started to wander around for a little bit. He came to talk with a girl that seemed to have an interest in him. She was tall, blonde, and she had the same eyes as Angelique.

He thought she was interesting but he also wanted to get away from her as soon as possible. Even though it was more than 90 years ago, the heartache was still the same. He stared at her for a little while, not knowing it became a bit awkward for her.

As time passed, Gerard thought that he started to forget what Angelique looked like. Her cute, pointy nose, the form of the curls that were hanging past her shoulders, the feeling of her soft, feminine hands... He was so scared to forget all about it that when he saw a similarity in someone, he would try to save as much details as he could.

"Hey there, are you alright?" the blonde girl asked worriedly.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm okay, I guess." Gerard put his hand at the back of his neck. He didn't actually know what to do with this situation.

"Want something to drink, handsome?" she smiled.

Gerard suddenly looked up. "What did she just call me? She called me handsome? I don't want her to call me handsome." He thought.

She smelled really good, though. Very pure, if that's the correct term to call what she smelled like. Suddenly, Gerard had an idea. He remembered something Frank said about the more you're drinking, the less thirsty you were for a long time. He decided to try it out. He may never know if he didn't try it, right?

"Yes, I would like something to drink. I'm going for a beer, what do you want?""

"I'm going for a Bacardi-cola." She said.

"Okay, I will be right back." Gerard walked away to the bar. He was thinking about how he should eat her. He decided he wanted to share her with Frank, as he kind of "stole" the first body.

As he arrived at the bar, he ordered one Bacardi-cola for the lady and one beer for himself. He walked back, and started working on a plan to lure her out. Suddenly, he saw Frank standing against a wall, drunk.

"Hey man, are you having fun?" Gerard asked Frank.

"Dude, yeah dude. I'm reaaaally thirsty though." He slurred his words. Gerard decided to tell Frank about his plans.

"Hey man, you got a beer. Can I have a beer?" Frank asked with grabby hands.

"No, listen, I got a plan. Are you still thirsty for blood?"

"Yes, I always am." As Gerard looked into Franks eyes, he saw that Frank's pupils started to delate from thirst.

"Okay, listen up. Since I kind of "stole" the first body of the evening, I wanted to make it up to you. I met this girl, and she smells really pure. I want to introduce her to you so you can do your thing. Sounds good?"

"Yes! Where is she?" Frank asked.

"She's over there. Come with me."

They walked to the girl Gerard had just met. Frank had a little trouble holding himself up and keeping his balance, but the effect soon started to fade away ah her smell became clearer.

"Oh man, you have found a jackpot." He heard Frank say from behind him.

"Shht, I know, right? Now, keep your mouth shut and act human." Gerard hissed.

They wriggled themselves through the group of people. Soon, Gerard had seen her and they walked towards her.

"Hey! I'm sorry it took so long. Here's your Bacardi-cola." Gerard said. "I want to introduce you to someone, this is my friend Frank."

"Hey!" Frank stuck out his hand to introduce himself properly.

"Well, hello there Frank." While she said that, she fluttered her eyelashes. She must've liked him.

"Hi there, Frank! Nice to meet you." she smiled with the widest smile Gerard had seen. She was very pretty, actually.

Frank looked at Gerard, and the moment their eyes locked, Gerard knew he had to lure her out.

"So ehm, what is your name? We told you ours, but we don't know yours." Gerard asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry! My name is Tabita" the girl said.

"Tabita." Frank smiled slyly. "Nice to meet you, Tabita."

"So," Gerard started to speak. "Would you like to come with us? To hang out, I mean."

"Yeah, sure!" She said, again with the brightest smile. The more they looked at her, the more they thought she was naïve. She also was, who would go home with two guys she just met half an hour ago?

As they started to walk away, he felt Franks' stare against his back.

"Dude, where are you planning on taking her? I have nowhere to go, you have nowhere to go. What is your plan?" Frank hissed.

"I thought you had a place?" Gerard asked, panicking a little.

"No, I don't. Shit, wait, I got a plan. Follow me." Frank said.

Tabita just chatted along they was. She was actually a kind human being. Gerard felt bad he picked her out for Frank. And he knew that Frank was feeling bad too, but hey, if you got to eat, you got to eat.

After 15 minutes or so, they arrived at a shabby-looking motel. The neon-lights were flickering and it didn't look that nice from the outside.

"Come on, I know these people." He said as he smiled. He had this look in his eyes that made Gerard feel… different. He couldn't really place this feeling but he didn't want to think about it too much. The only thing that counted right now was drinking blood.

Frank walked up to the reception desk, with his back turned to Gerard and Tabita. As Frank started to speak, he could see the guy behind the counter become scared. His eyes started to widen and he became very clumsy. He quickly handed Frank a key.

Frank walked towards them, smiling. "Got it!" he said happily while holding up the keys. "We got room 420."

As they walked up to the stairs, Tabita was still chatting along. Gerard tried to ignore her. He had already drank this night, but her heartbeat was still a bit too loud for him to handle. This was Frank's meal, he should stay out of it.

"Here it is!" Frank said out loud. He put the key in the keyhole and let Tabita in first. "Ladies first!" Gerard heard Frank say. As she walked into the room, Frank threw a dark, gloomy glance towards Gerard. Gerard smiled back and Frank carefully showed his fangs through his smile. He walked into the room and Gerard followed him.

Tabita thought they were going to have a fun time, as she was laying on the bed already.

"So, what do you guys want to do? You want to have some fun?" she asked seductively.

"Oh yeah, we are going to have lots of fun, baby." Frank answered her.

At this moment, Gerard knew it wouldn't last long before Frank would attack. Before he even realized it, Frank shot himself at Tabita as he heard a short but loud scream.

And then, the smell hit him. All Gerard could see was a bright, vibrant red. Red that meant to be in the land of living, and not hanging in between a limbo. A red that meant the warmth of the love of a loved one. A red that meant life was seeping away.


	5. Chapter 5

**Gerard POV.**

The next morning I woke up with a feeling of contentness. I knew I was awake, I just didn't want to open my eyes because I felt really good for the first time in a long period of time and I did not want that to end.

The ache of thirst was a lot less then at the beginning of the night. Although I wouldn't trust myself alone with a living human, I feel better killing when Frank is with me. He just feels like a safety net for me right now, making sure I don't go over my limits.

After a while of laying in bed, the light started to get through the curtains and I suddenly remembered where I was. My eyes opened wide and I looked around me. There was Frank lying next to me, and the girl was laying in the corner, curled up in a ball.

I just assumed she was dead, since I don't really remember much from last night. Frank attacked her, and then it all went black for me. Or to say it with a bad and inappropriate pun; it all went red.

I don't know what it is or where it comes from, but it seems like I know Frank longer than just one day. He seems so familiar. Sometimes I just can't keep my eyes off him because he fascinates me so much. He has a dark and gloomy sphere around him, and his eyes just scream "killer". I don't know what it is, but I like him.

Frank was breathing evenly, what meant that he was still asleep. I started to worry about how we get this body out of here without being noticed. This blonde girl was sucked dry until the last drop, how the fuck are we going to get a body out of a shady motel room, through the halls, off the stairs and along the counter out of this building? We had to wait until nighttime. Yes, that was a good idea. After it became dark, we can maybe-

Suddenly, I heard Frank moan. I better start trying to wake him up.

"Hey, Frank. Frank! Wake up man! It is already far in the afternoon. We should get going."

"Wha-, what? How late is it?" Frank asked.

"It's 1 in the afternoon. Come on man, we have to get that girl out of the room."

"Oh, don't worry about her," he smiled, while looking in her direction. "She will be taken care of." Frank said slyly.

"Taken care of? How?" I was confused by his words. The man behind the counter had seen us three coming in. If he would find her here, dead, we would be fucked.

"I got some connections, you know. Believe me when I say that they wouldn't rat us out to the police. Trust me." Frank assured me. And as hard as I had it at that moment, I indeed trusted him.

I sighed. "Okay then, let's get going."

We closed the door behind us and we walked off the stairs. When we walked past the reception counter, the man behind it was startled by our sight. Frank said goodbye to the man behind it in the most sarcastic way ever. As we walked through the doors on our way out, I heard him giggle.

"What was that all about?" I asked him.

"Well, let's say that he doesn't want to see me getting mad at him." Frank answered. He was having fun with himself for a moment so I decided to just let him be.

As we walked through the streets for a little while, we decided to just go into the first coffeeshop we run in to.

We both decided we'd set for a black coffee and two croissants. After we paid the cashier, we went to sit next to a window. I liked looking outside while I drank my coffee and ate my breakfast. Watching people go by and go on with their day just brought this sort of.. peace over me. They had something I could never have again.

When I looked back at Frank, I noticed that he has a thousand-yard-stare and I wonder what he's thinking about. I decided to ask him some questions to get to know him a little bit better.

"Hey, Frank, can I ask you something?"

"You just did." He answered with a smile. "But if you want to ask me another; yes, you can."

"How did you become like this?"

"Like what?" his tome suddenly changed. I started to worry if I made a mistake by navigating the subject to this, but I had to know.

"A vampire."

As soon as I asked my question, his eyes turned black and he looked at me with an intense gaze.

With a bit hesitation, he started to tell me his story.


	6. Chapter 6

**Frank POV.**

"A vampire." I heard Gerard say. For me that was unfortunately a long time ago and I tried to push the memories away. I started to trust Gerard and I wanted to tell him, that wasn't the problem. The problem was that even I didn't want to remember how I became like… this.

To be honest, it's not the killing that bothers me the most. No. I have been to war, I can shoot a man without feeling bad about it after it. The more you do it, the less it makes you feel bad afterwards. Of course I felt like a wreck the first time when I had to put someone else down for my own food, but hey, I need to eat too. The saying "one man's misfortune is another man's opportunity", couldn't have applied more. The thing that really bothered me the most, was the constant thirst. With every breath I took, the burning and aching got worse and worse. I have to be honest and say that I got it more under control now, but in the century I was transformed, I wanted to kill myself.

"Frank, are you alright?" Gerard snapped me out of my thoughts. He looked at me with a worried look in his eyes.

"You can tell me, I think my story is just as bad as yours so it's safe with me." he said.

I couldn't bring myself to answer him. To be honest, his question caught me off guard. Badly. I wanted to answer him, I truly did, but I didn't have a clue where to start. So much has happened in the last couple of centuries that I even ask myself if my memories were true or false. Sometimes I don't even know if something I remembered even truly happened.

"I, ehm.. I…" I stammered.

"If you don't want to tell me that is absolutely okay. I am here when you are ready." He smiled at me. Even though his face was sunken in, I could still see his eyes were lit up, somehow.

Gerard has been through a lot. His pale face and bags under his eyes could tell enough. He was too skinny to say he was healthy. He reminded me of skeletons at Halloween, dancing through the darkness of the night. Halloween was supposed to be festive, but we, as creatures of darkness, knew the real meaning behind it was very different than the Americanized version.

Eventually, I started to speak to him. "Well, I want to tell you, but I don't even know where to begin. I have been around for a couple of hundred years."

"A couple of hundred years?!" Gerard repeated in shock. His eyes were open wide.

"Yes. I was born in 1403 in Rome as Francesco Iero da Firenze. I just introduce myself as "Frank" because Francesco brings up too many questions." I said jokingly. But it was true. I stopped introducing myself as Francesco because people would immediately ask where I come from. I always have to lie and when I forget my own lies, people will ask more questions. No, I shall go forth as Frank.

"1403?" I heard Gerard say again. "And I thought I was old! I was only born in 1892."

"Yeah, well, it's hard for me to remember sometimes. I have known so many people and I had also seen them die. Sometimes I just wished I couldn't remember anything at all." I told him. As I spoke, the sadness started to wash over me. Every friend I had was mortal, and would somehow die someday. That's why I chose to be alone. A hermit.

And then the so much dreaded question came. I knew he had to ask me somehow. "Do you remember how you became like this?" he asked very carefully. Somehow, I like this part of being a vampire. I could see his every move and so I could see if he was sincere, or scared, or lying. He didn't want to hurt me, so I decided to answer this truthfully.

"Yes, or actually, no. I was bitten as a baby. I sort of learnt to live like this." I hesitantly said.

"But how? Vampire's don't age, do they?"

"Well, my transitioning took longer than usual. The venom wasn't powerful enough so it took a bit longer than usual."

Gerard looked surprised. He was leaning with his head on his hands just to listen to me.

"When my mother started to notice something different with me, she didn't know what to do with me. My parents got so scared of me eventually, that they brought me to the most far away forest they could find to abandon me."

I started playing with the hem of my shirt to avoid eye contact. He was the first person in a long time I opened up to. I somehow felt a bit ashamed because I pushed the feelings and memories away for so long.

"They did what?" he looked at me in shock.

"Yeah, you heard me." I did a pathetic try to laugh it off, but my emotions started to show.  
"She even told me that I was a demon and that I would ruin the family honour if I stayed. Afterwards I heard around the grapevine that my parents told everyone I ran away and drowned in a well." Even though it was so long ago, it still hurts. If even my own parents didn't want me, who would?

I felt the lump in my throat coming up. I didn't want to cry, not in front of Gerard.

"Wow.. I'm so sorry. I don't even know what to say." He struggled with his words, I could see that.

"It's okay, you get used to the feelings after a while." I bowed my head down. The tears I was fighting so hard, started to swell up in my eyes.

"I am going to get some more coffee, would you also like a refill?" Gerard asked softly. It was like he knew I needed a minute to recover to act normal again.

"Yes, I'd like that very much." I almost whispered. If I would use my voice, I would definitely turn into a sobbing mess.

"I'll be right back." He patted his hand on my back as he walked past our table.

Everything I pushed back so hard, came to the surface of my emotional wellbeing. I haven't felt so much like shit in a few decades. As I looked up, I saw Gerard throwing a few glances at me. It made me feel good. As much as I could make out of it, he was checking if I was still alright. He worriedly looked at me, and I gave a weak smile through my tears. He smiled back and me and a warm wave of contentness I just couldn't explain, washed over me. As soon as he turned away, I felt my cheeks flush, as far as that was even possible.

He returned with the strong brewed, black coffee I love so much. I rested my arms on the table and braced the cup in my hands. I inhaled the scent and it somehow comforted me even more. The cup was nice and warm.

"Are you okay?" I heard Gerard almost whisper.

I looked up and we stared at each other for a few seconds.

"Yeah, I think I am." I heard myself stammer.

"Let's move to another topic." I suddenly heard him say. "What have you been up to after you've left your parents? Where have you been?"

"Well.." I started. "I have been to war." I said, maybe a bit hesitant, again.

"After I got up on my own feet, I went to Spain. At the point I left Italy, I wanted to move as far as possible from my hometown. In that time we didn't have proper transportation so I did everything by feet. After a month or so, I arrived in Spain. The Anglo-Spanish War was going on at the time, so I decided I would join the military forces. I had nowhere to go and nothing to lose. I wanted to see the world. Joining the army was the only choice I had right then."

Gerard looked at me in awe.

"How did you even survive?!" he almost yelled at me.

"Are you even going to ask me this question?" I laughed at him. "We heal up pretty fast, you know. I got some scars, I was shot and stabbed, but I was healed within a day and I covered it up with tattoos, so there's nothing visible anymore. Nothing that remembers me about my days in the army."

As soon as I was done telling my story, I finished my coffee and Gerard did too. It felt good to finally let it out to someone. Somehow, I had the feeling that me opening up to him, had him trusting me more and I really liked that. It was a long time ago since I had even something close to a friendship with someone so I wanted to hold on to this as long as I can.


	7. Chapter 7

That same night they decided to hang out at the graveyard. How stereotypical. Although the setting was really dark and gloomy, Gerard felt at home in places like this. The dark whispers that came from the shadows relaxed him. The silence somehow softened the screams in his head for blood.

The moon was half-full and the stars shone bright. It was a really bright night, so the earth was still lightened by the shining of the moon and stars.

Knowing Frank, he brought two bottles of strong whiskey. The day continued of them both telling each other about their pasts. Gerard told Frank about the day he was transformed and Frank told Gerard more stories about his days in the Spanish army. Truth be told, the mood between them was sad and dark, so the whiskey was a very welcome guest.

"Are we almost there yet?" Frank asked, while following Gerard on his tracks.

"Yes, almost. It is a little walk but it'll be worth it. I have never seen a person come there so we can spend the night over there. It's totally safe, I promise."

"Okay." Frank answered. "If you say so."

After a while of walking though the dark woods, they arrived at a clearing in the middle of the woods behind the graveyard. They decided to take their places on it. Surprisingly enough, the row of graves didn't end. Some headstones were standing here for more than 200 years, but since there was no one to care for anymore, they will stand here up until eternity. Gerard decided to sit down and lean against the first headstone he could find. Frank just decided to take place next to him and give Gerard his bottle.

They sat a few moments in silence. Actually, they didn't even know how long they sat there. Gerard was way too busy to look at the stars and the moon. He loved looking at them because they reminded him so much of his lost mortality.

Frank, on the other hand, was already chugging on his bottle of whiskey. Bringing back memories of the past wasn't his favourite thing to do. With whiskey, he could forget them, even if it was only a little bit. He started to feel warmer inside the more he drank. The more he drank**,** the less lonely he felt and the less the war-flashbacks were.

Gerard shot a quick glance at Frank, who was not looking okay at all.

"Are you okay?" he asked worriedly. Frank was staring into oblivion and shaking a little. A little sheen of sweat started to appear on his forehead.

Frank didn't answer. Gerard decided to sit in front of Frank. As he was lowering to his knees, he looked in Frank's eyes and got scared of what he saw.

For a split second, they stared at each other. The gaze in Frank's eyes was the one of a predator. His pupils were dilated to the maximum with a small, red edge around them.

With a growl, Frank lunged himself at Gerard. Gerard tried to push him off but Frank had him pinned to the ground. As soon as Frank saw his chance, he let his fangs sink in Gerard's neck. Gerard tried to fight back but he couldn't push off Frank.

"Frank, stop!" he pleaded. The only response Frank gave was an animalistic growl.

"Frank, please!" Gerard's pleading started to sound more like whimpers. His vision was starting to get blurry and the moment he started to pass out, Frank came back to his senses.

"O-oh my god." Frank blurted out. "Gerard! Gerard, are you still there? I am so sorry!" Gerard wasn't really able to say anything. He just stared at Frank like he had seen a ghost. Frank's chin was covered with Gerard's dark blood. His pale marble-like face stood off against the dark red liquid.

"Dude, what the fuck were you doing?!" Gerard finally blurted out. He was angry. Or to put it better; he was mad.

"I-I'm so sorry.." Frank almost whispered. He was shocked that he could do that to another vampire. He never had the urge to bite another partner in suffering, Gerard was the first one he ever bit. Frank couldn't really help it, though. To him, Gerard's smell was almost irresistible. Hell, it was irresistible, otherwise this wouldn't have happened.

Gerard stood up, slightly dizzy and almost losing his balance. He reached for his blood-soaked neck. Suddenly, Gerard fell down. He was frantically shaking and his eyes rolled back.

Frank stood next to him in shock. He wanted to punch himself in the face for what he'd just done. Gerard's scent was really good, and he knew this was going to happen someday, but he wasn't prepared for what was happening directly in front of him. Frank heard Gerard was trying to say something. Frank dropped himself on his knees to hover over Gerard's shaking body. His fists clenched on the fabric on his shoulders.

When Frank could hear Gerard's voice a bit better, he heard a very familiar language. When he leaned in to try to hear it better, he heard that Gerard was speaking Italian. Not was it only just Italian, but they were very familiar words.

Frank was hearing his own story out of Gerard's' mouth. It was the story of Frank's transitioning.

"Mama! Mama mi dispiace!" Frank heard over and over again. Gerard was getting visions of Frank's mother telling him to leave. It was heart-breaking. Frank couldn't bear to see and listen to it anymore, so with tears in his eyes he started to shake Gerard.

"Gerard! Gerard please, wake up!" Nothing happened. Frank started to feel tears swelling up in his eyes, full of regret of what he had just done. Why did he have to be so stupid? He should have tried to pull himself back. He'd never had to drink that much. Why the fuck did he do that?

Questions were shooting through his head like arrows.

Frank slapped Gerard on his cheeks to try to get him back to his senses.

"Please, stay with me!" he cried.

Gerard started to become a bit more tranquil. Suddenly, he opened his eyes with a shot.

While Gerard was still laying in Frank's arms, they stared in each other's eyes.

"What the fuck just happened?" Frank asked frantically.

"I think.. I think I was you." Gerard said softly.

"You were me? How?"

"I think I was talking with your mother, while I was in your body." Gerard was really confused, he couldn't really fit the pieces into the puzzle of what just happened.

"Frank?" Gerard asked softly.

"Yes?" he almost whispered back.

"Wh-why have you bitten me?" Gerard asked softly while biting softly on his lower lip. He almost couldn't look straight at Frank so he tried to avoid looking him in the eye.

"I.. I could not _not_ bite you."

"What? How?"

"Don't you understand, Gerard? Your scent is irresistible. When I saw you entering the bar the first night we met, I couldn't get my eyes off of you." Frank confessed, and it was true; Gerard was the flickering flame on a candle in the dark and Frank was the moth that was pulled to it. Frank knew that when he came too close, he would be burned and that was exactly what just happened. He burned himself and he knew for sure that this was a wound that wasn't meant to heal.

Gerard looked him straight in the eye. He was shocked by the words that were coming from Frank's mouth. Gerard placed his hand softly on Frank's cheek. Frank had seen his chance and placed his lips gently on Gerard's.

Gerard didn't really know what was happening. As soon as it started to dawn on him, he pushed Frank off.

"I-I'm sorry, I can't do this!" Gerard stood up and walked away, deeper into the dark woods.


	8. Chapter 8

**Gerard POV.**

Days had passed. Even weeks since I walked out on Frank. The first 4 days I spent sulking on my hotel room, reflecting on what has happened. What he did that night left me very confused. I understand why he did it, even his scent was very appealing to me. But this time it was me who had everything under control. At least, that was what I was trying to tell myself.

My mind was foggy and I couldn't think clear, the only thing I could really think of was me, laying underneath Frank with his lips connected to mine. What did it mean? Did he truly have feelings for me or was it just acting in the heat of the moment? And even if he had feelings for me, do I have feelings for him? Maybe. Yes. No. I don't know. Me being curled up in his arms after a psychosis or vision or paranormal experience wasn't the most romantic thing I can imagine, but still. When I looked in his hazel eyes, I had seen something so familiar but yet so unrecognizable. The look I had seen in his eyes that night had the same passion as a raging forest fire.

I started to become hungry again and I had to really do something about it before it would all fall down. Frank had taken too much blood from me, I couldn't even stand up straight a few days after the "incident". Maybe going out was a good plan. It was already starting to darken outside and on top of that, it was full moon again. Being thirsty explains a lot, then.

As I went outside, I took a deep breath and the fresh air filled my lungs. It had been a while since I tasted the air from the outside world, this was definitely better that the lingering, musty air in the hotel room. Since summer was coming to an end, the weather was gradually becoming cooler and the days started to shorten. For creatures like me, this was a positive thing. We had more time to do our hunting during the evening and we would usually go unnoticed.

I walked through the empty shopping streets and when I suddenly looked up, I passed the bar where I met Frank that first night. I was actually really thirsty for a few shots of whiskey. Should I go in or should I not? I decided to walk inside.

The scent was exactly the same. The smell of cheap beer, sweat and slutty girls. In instinct, I directly looked at the window where he sat. He has been here, his scent is still lingering around.

"For fucks sake, Gerard, just try to not think about him for like, 5 minutes?" I softly mumbled to myself.

I made eye contact with the girl behind the counter and I stuck up my index finger as the sign for wanting a shot of whiskey. She already knew what I wanted. Sometimes I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing, since I come here very often. Her name is Hayley, she is this pretty, petit redhead with an awesome bubbly personality. I tried to make a few moves on her in the past, but it would be better if I didn't do it again. She is way too good for this world and I don't want her fate to be the exact same as mine.

I couldn't help myself and I decided to sit near the window. It started to rain outside. The drops were seeping past the window, making it harder to look outside. People were running to find some shelter against the pouring rain as it started to rain very hard. My thoughts started to wander. Again. I was wondering where he would be right now. Probably at a party getting drunk as fuck. I don't know.

"Hey there, stranger!" I heard a familiar, sweet voice. It was Hayley bringing me my beer.

"How have you been, sweetheart?" she asked kindly. That's what I meant with being too good for this world. It didn't matter how long she hadn't seen a friend, she would never forget them and she would always care about the people she met.

"I have been... good, I think. I have been really busy lately." I answered her.

"You look tired, G. You go on business trips way too much." She said with a wink and she put down my whiskey on the table. Oh yeah, that's right; I told her I was really busy with work-related issues so she didn't get suspicious of me disappearing randomly.

"Well, enjoy your beer and get some rest!" she said with a smile and walked back to the bar. She was absolutely beautiful. She is the kind of girl where guys almost break their necks because of them looking at her when she's walking down the streets.

When I was staring outside, following the patterns of the rain on the windows, I heard a lot of commotion.

A group of people came in with a lot of yelling. I decided to keep an eye on them because I didn't trust them. The guys in their clique were making obscene gestures towards Hayley when she wasn't looking and the girls were looking for guys to have an exciting evening with. Something wasn't right about them. The guys looked really roughed up, really wolf-like. How they fit together in a group, they looked like a pack of wolves. It wouldn't surprise me if they actually were a pack of werewolves, which would also explain my disliking of them. The ladies on the other hand, had something very mystical about them. Their gazes were stone-like. I really, really tried to avoid eye contact with them. They gave me the jitters.

I tried to focus on what was happening outside, but the girls were constantly trying to get my attention. It felt really uncomfortable and I shifted a little on my chair. When I broke my gaze from the outside-world, one of these girls was suddenly sitting in front of me.

"That is Frank's spot." I thought to myself.

I looked at her, still feeling uncomfortable. She had her gaze focussed on me as she was leaning her head on one of her hands, her free hand tapping on the table with her nails. As far as I could see, she had eyes like the colour of the sea. It wasn't blue but it wasn't particularly green either.

"Hey babe." She started talking. "What's your name?"

"I... uhm... My... uh..." I stuttered.

"No, don't talk. I already know enough." She smiled wide. She still had weird teeth. They weren't vampire-like, but I didn't really knew how to place it.

I somehow checked her teeth if she was also 'one of us', to call it like that. As far as I could see, nothing recognizable. She still had this weird aura hanging around her.

"Look, we are heading to beach party in a few, do you want to come?" she asked.

"A beach party? In mid-November?" She confused me.

"Yes, a beach party. Oh come on, I wasn't born yesterday. You are a bloodsucker, you can handle low temperatures. My name is Melusine, by the way. Nice to meet you." She smiled seductively.

"So, already decided if you want to come with us or not?" she softly scratched her nails over my free hand. Since I couldn't bring my thoughts to any other topic than Frank, I decided it could be a good idea to go with them. You know, for distraction of my own thoughts.

As we walked out of the bar, Frank's scent started to fade away, which kind of made me sick. I didn't know where he was or what he was doing. It didn't really matter. Somehow, deep down I knew I wasn't going to see him anytime soon so I better get used to it now. I screwed up and this was the price I had to pay.

When we entered the beach, it was indeed very chilly. It didn't really bother me anymore, since I wasn't a living person anymore, you know.

The moon was shining bright and had the most beautiful reflection on the lake. They set up a bonfire and tents with festive lamps to lead the humans to the booze. I decided not to drink any alcohol anymore because it smelled funky. They had definitely messed with it.

There were a bunch of other people. A lot of living humans, to my surprise. I had an ominous feeling that this was the kind of party with a lot of "food". Not the kind of party where everyone brings something with them to eat. This was the kind of party where you didn't have to bring something to eat because the food was coming to this location out of itself. I had to admit; this was a nice coincidence for me since I was really hungry and I lost a lot of blood since Frank almost sucked me dry.

I took a deep breath in and I could smell the vicious red liquid inside of them. I heard their beating hearts and the warmth radiating from their bodies. The predator in me awakened and my pupils started to dilate. A sly grin started to form on my face.

As my vision sharpened, I set focus on my next victim. He was standing alone, looking at the partying crowd. He wasn't really outgoing and that was exactly what I wanted. I always picked people who weren't noticed if they were gone. It gives me more space to run and hide. It was a guy from around the age of 25. He had blond hair and brown eyes. He had a really cute tip-tilted nose and thin lips. I decided to start a little chat with him and I walked right up to him. Oh, and an important fact; he was definitely gay. I could make abuse of that perfectly.

As I came closer to him, I could smell he had already drank some beer. The same beer that smelled funky. Oh well.

We locked eyes and he smiled at me and looked shyly at his shoes. The guy liked me. Poor child.

I stood close to him. A bit too close for my liking, but he didn't seem to mind much. He just kind of... stared and smiled at me. I decided to start a little conversation.

"Hey there." I said, faking shyness.

"Hey." He said softly, still smiling widely at me.

"So... are you having fun?" I asked. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I tried to talk to him and lure him in but he was too shy and I felt like a fish out of the water.

"Well, I surely am now." He answered and he softly stroked my hand. This was my sign. I started to just go with it until I could take him for a "special walk" into the woods and eat him.

I smiled at him widely. Trying to look nonchalant, I ran my hand through my hair while I looked at my shoes.

"So, how come that you weren't having fun earlier and you are having fun right now?" I asked while I liked up at him.

"Well, there's a really handsome guy present at this party I haven't seen before." He fluttered his eyelashes at me. Ugh, Franks' were prettier.

Shit. Focus, Gerard, focus.

"Hmm..." I sighed. "I wonder who that guy is, then." I slyly put my hand around his waist.

"Oh, it's just a guy." His smile was getting wider. I could hear from his heartbeat that he really wanted me because his heartrate was getting up like a rocket.

"Just a guy, hm?" I said softly. I slowly pulled him in more closely and I brought my hand to the back of his neck.

I softly heard him whimper. This was going to be good.

His smile had faded away and made place for arousement. His heartbeat was still going up. If I continued like this, I was afraid that I would bring him into cardiac arrest.

I kissed him. Hard. He placed his one hand on my arm and his other hand on my back. As I slid with my tongue into his mouth, I felt his nails digging onto my skin.

He pulled back. "You are feeling cold. Do you want to make a walk to warm you up?" he said seductively.

This was looking more than good for me.

"Does it sound like a good idea to you?" I said seductively.

"Yeah." And there was his smile again. Okay buddy, you chose for this to happen to you.

I took him by the hand and led him to the forest near the lake where the party was being held. Large pine trees were standing densely next to each other, there is no chance they would be discovering us here.

His breath still smelled like the funky beer. I know for sure that his blood would also taste a bit like it, but it didn't bother me that much. I needed to drink and complement my own stock.

When we walked a bit further up where no one could see us, I didn't hesitate to kiss him. He kissed me in return and didn't hold back. This guy was really enthusiastic. Not that it bothered me, of course. My ego was being boosted and I liked it.

I pushed him against a tree for support, my knee between his legs. His hands were holding me tight against him and were moving all over my back. My two hands were in his neck and pushed his lips against mine. I let out a moan and he let them out in return. His dick was getting hard and I felt it pushing against my upper leg. I decided to have some fun with it and placed my hand over his hardening dick. I palmed him through his jeans and he whimpered. He let out a moan what was sounding more like a whisper. "Fuck." He breathed.

"Having a nice time, baby?" I whispered in his ear.

"Yes... oh... –fuck- yes." He moaned out.

I decided to push him a bit further. This was almost as fun as playing a game. Well, to me it was a game so it didn't really compare.

I placed my hand on the buckle of his belt and swiftly opened it. I slowly opened the button on his pants, and with that same slowness I opened his fly.

"Oh my God, you are killing me. Hurry up!" he hissed under his breath.

I wriggled my hand in his pants and I started to stroke his, now hard, dick. I could feel his heartbeat under his skin

"Am I really, now?" As if he could read my mind. I smirked darkly.

I pushed kisses against his neck and he made these cute little sounds when I softly bit on it. He is really being a toy for me right now but I seriously do not care.

His brows furrowed and he leaned his head against the tree. From his panting and moaning I could make up that he was getting close. To be honest, he moaned like a total slut.

I thumbed the tip of his dick and he let out a hard moan.

"I... am... –fuck- going to… Ah!" he tried to let out.

"Are you going to cum before you had even given me some pleasure?" I whispered in his ear. I placed my mouth on his neck and started to place a hickey on it. It was almost dinner time and this was my sign that my table was taken.

"I... –ah-." He moaned.

"Because that's not how it's going to happen." I snapped at him.

He looked at me with widened eyes and a confused look on his face. "Wha... what?"

"I am going to kill you and then eat you, just so you know." I told him calmly and grinned, showing my fangs.

His eyes pleaded me not to. He did want to live, I could see it on his face. But it was not going to happen.

After I studied his face for a bit more, I bit his neck exactly on the spot where I placed the hickey.

I was right, his blood had a bit of a weird taste. He drank just a bit too much for me not to bother the taste. He also was a smoker, he tasted like nicotine. Besides the taste, his blood filling my stomach felt really good. I could feel myself getting a bit stronger by the gulps I took. I made sure I wasn't being messy, I still had to show my face to, you know, living people.

I sucked until there was not a drip of blood left and carried his body a bit far more up in the woods, hoping other vampires weren't being invited to also join this party.

When I walked back to the party, my head started to ache really badly. I tried to ignore it, but I almost couldn't manage to.

I checked my face and clothing for smears of blood for the last time but I was all good.

Suddenly there was a very familiar and warm smell hanging in the air. Was it... Frank? No, it couldn't be. My headache was making me confused and dizzy. I still managed to get to the party.

When I arrived, I looked for that Melusine-girl. I was wondering if she could tell me what was in the beer, because I was sure that my headache rooted from that. And more importantly; asking her what I could do against it, because I wasn't thinking clearly anymore.

When I turned around, I noticed everyone was sitting around a bonfire, with one of the shady wolf-guys on the guitar. Next to him was Melusine. When she saw me coming, she smirked at me. This was the first time when I started to get really nauseous, not only because of the side effects of that fucking beer, but I also didn't trust her.

I placed myself in the circle the people were sitting in when Melusine stood up, telling us that she was going to sing for us. Oh god no. Please don't let this be the kind of girl who thinks she can sing, the typical "singing-face" included while her voice sounds like a caterwaul. I have faced too many girl like that in my long, immortal life and I had enough of it. If I could have eaten every one of those kind of girls, I would have been the strongest vampire that was walking on this planet.

When she started singing, I had to admit it wasn't that bad. It felt really soothing, actually. What the weird thing was, it also made me sleepy. When I was looking around, I could see some other people already falling asleep. When I locked eyes with her, she was smiling darkly.

Shit.

_Singing. Sea-coloured eyes. Weird teeth. Beach party._

Could she be... no. No, she couldn't. There was no fucking way she was a siren.

You can make me believe a lot, but you can't tell me fucking mermaids _do _exist. Well, good guess. I was wrong.

Before I was changed, I was never really aware of the world around me. Well, I was to a certain degree, but I could have never guessed everything was true in the stories my mother read to me when I was a little boy.

I started to get really sleepy. I was fighting against it but it really wasn't working. I slammed my hands against my head and rolled over to my side, my legs curled up against my body. Her singing transformed into screams. As hard as I tried to cover up my ears, her screams stung like a thousand needles in my ears. I was passing out. I looked up at her for a final time and her eyes had turned black. It was only now that I could see the gills form in her neck and the scales on her body.

Darkness consumed me. I fell into a deep sleep without being able to recognize it. For decades and decades I wished for my suffering to end, but when I came as close to death as this I regretted the wishes that I made.


	9. Chapter 9

**Gerard POV.**

Deep sleep carried me away in her warm arms. Nothing seemed real anymore and immortality was just a dream. I was dwelling in unconsciousness, fighting to get out. I never knew what it was like to be dead, but I knew it couldn't be much different than this.

The pure nothingness wasn't peaceful, it was frightening. I wanted to go back, I had to. I had to fight.

There was a tiny speck of light at the end of this road in this black nothingness. I kept running and running, but without progress. When I looked behind me, my footsteps were filled with puddles of blood. This was it. This is the moment you are not just in a dream anymore. The dream was transforming into a nightmare.

I heard screaming but when I looked around me, there was pure emptiness. Suddenly something grabbed me by the throat. But again; there was nothing to see.

The sounds started to get dull. I was floating. I was being pulled under water without actually feeling the water. I had to snap out of it. Now.

I decided to do everything I could to get back to that speck of light. I frantically looked around, but there was only darkness at first.

As I started to move as frantically as I could, the speck of light was beginning to grow bigger and bigger and I could hear the screaming again. I didn't know why but I was going into the right direction. Back into consciousness.

People were fighting but I couldn't understand why. This was wrong. I had no clue what I was getting myself into, but it wasn't a good thing.

I screamed and I fought to open my eyes but they wouldn't open. Every time I tried to slam my arms around me, they were pinned down.

My eyes flung open and I could see what was happening around me. My sight was very blurry but I had to know what was going on.

I could identify the beach I was laying on. Okay, check. I knew where I was, that was a good thing.

I tried to get up and that worked. Also a positive thing. The only thing I liked less was that my head was still hurting like I was being knocked out with a hammer. My sense of smell was still working when I felt like I was being slapped in the face with it the smell of iron. Apparently I was laying in a puddle of blood. Unfortunately, it was mine.

When I inspected my body, I came to the conclusion that my arms were full of cuts. I was soaking wet because I was laying on the beach in the breaking of the waves and my mouth was full of dirty, salt water. When I moved, my whole body was hurting as if an eighteen-wheeler had run over me in my sleep. Although it was an uneventful inconvenience, it didn't matter right now. The only thing that did matter was getting myself out of here.

Far behind me I heard a lot of commotion. Punches were thrown and kicks were given. The yelling was almost incomprehensible. Escaping plans were shooting through my head and I had seen my chance. As long as they were busy with fighting each other, they wouldn't see me sneak off into the woods.

I tried pulling myself up, and I had to say I was having a harder time than I thought I would have. I felt the cuts in my arm stretching as I moved and it stung. The only thing I really hoped right now, is that the fucker who did this is already dead.

As I was planning my escape, I looked around and all I could see was dead people lying in their own blood. It wasn't a pretty picture and I am actually feeling bad for the first person to discover this mess. I was used to this. I did this every month, but if the person who would be here first is a bit sensitive, they might have to be included in a mental institution.

I could already see where I have to go to get out of here. It was possible for me to crawl so I had to go with that. I couldn't run, I was weak and if I would stand up they would definitely see me. It would be my death.

As soon as I had seen my chance, I went off into the forest. They didn't notice me, too busy with fighting and killing each other, I guess. When I knew I was far enough so that they couldn't see me, I looked behind me. Melusine was losing against one of the werewolves. Good. Let the blobfish die.

I let myself fall against a tree. I couldn't walk anymore, I was too weak. Even here, a few miles from the fight, the scent of blood was really strong and it would surprise me if vampires couldn't smell this.

Sitting against a tree was nice for a change, the only doubt I had was if I was still going to be able to get up. I was really tired and my legs didn't want to cooperate with the rest of my body and my mind.

And there it was again. The feeling of numbness you feel right before you fall asleep. Functioning was hard when you were missing several litres of blood. My eyelids started to get heavy. At this point, I wasn't even scared anymore. Just annoyed that my body was shutting itself down whenever it wanted to.

I was getting really cold, but that wasn't strange; it was November. The trees were already releasing their leafs or were already empty. The forest floor was covered with crimson pieces.

The smell it gave off was lonely and reminded me of death.

When I closed my eyes, a warm, familiar scent entered my nose. It startled me, it couldn't be Frank. Frank was mad at me, he wouldn't look for me. I was sure about that.

I looked around but the only thing I could see was darkness. The only thing that gave off light was the pale moon.

I heard footsteps coming closer. I was weakened but I wasn't afraid. When the footsteps were coming closer, I hissed to give off a warning not to mess with me. It's not that I could actually fight or do something, but hey, it wasn't the first time I bluffed myself out of a situation.

The footsteps were coming closer despite my warnings. The footsteps were accompanied by a voice this time.

"Hello?" the voice said.

Wait a second. I knew that voice.

"Who's that?" I croaked.

"Gerard?!" the voice yelled.

I gathered up all my strength to lift myself up for a bit. It was a good thing that I let myself fall against a tree, otherwise I was more helpless than I already was.

I stumbled to the other side of the tree and tried to look around me. A few metres away from me, little red dots appeared.

"Show yourself!" I yelled. I started to get irritated because I couldn't see who I was dealing with and that way I couldn't calculate any potential danger.

The little red dots were coming closer and I could see the forms of a face and body now. The face had a pointy jaw and black hair that was hanging in a fringe across his face. He wasn't really tall and his scent was more than delicious. My mind wasn't working like a wanted to and his scent pulled me into hunter-mode. I growled.

He took a step closer.

"Gerard?" he said softly.

I could see him now. The red dots were his beautiful hazel eyes. His pupils were dilated and had a vibrant red halo around them.

I stumbled forwards and grabbed his shoulder with my hand. I fell against him as I lost my balance.

"Gerard?! What happened?"

"I... I was.." I tried to speak but it was hopeless.

"Gerard let me help you. Please tell me what happened!" he pleaded.

As he was talking to me, I started to see black smudges in my vision. I dropped myself on the forest floor because I couldn't hold myself up anymore.

I could hear Frank's voice in the distance, but it was already too late. I passed out from blood loss and fell into the empty void which I'd become so familiar with.


	10. Chapter 10

**Gerard POV.**

I was waking up in a room I have never seen before to the light of a bright shining sun. The warm aroma of coffee was coming from out of the other room.

"Where am I?" I asked myself softly. I looked around the room. I was laying in a king-size bed with a lot of pillows. The room itself had a dark colour scheme with lots of black and dark grey. I liked it. Bright colours just weren't my thing.

What happened last night? I remember the mermaid-girl, the party, the fight, Frank finding me in the woods last night but how the hell did I get here?

I was sitting straight up in bed, still feeling dizzy. I was still very weak, but it was already better than last night. A nice bed and a good sleep had done me well. I threw my legs over the edge of the bed, getting ready to stand up and to find out where I was but that went different than I expected. Standing up didn't really worked well because I fell on the floor with a loud thump. As I was trying to get up from the floor, I heard footsteps coming my way.

"Gerard? Are you already awake?" The voice said.

It was Frank.

What did Frank do here? Was this his house? It couldn't be, he told me he didn't own a house.

When I looked up to the doorway, the other vampire was standing there. He was holding up two mugs of coffee in his hands.

"Can you get up by yourself or do I have to help you?" he asked softly.

He wasn't feeling comfortable. His shoulders were hanging low and he had bags under his eyes. He looked at me with disappointment.

"I can get up by myself, I think." I ran my hand through my hair as I answered him.

"Okay. Well, if you want coffee then I'll put yours here okay? In case you still want to sleep a bit. I will be sitting in the living room when you wake up." His eyes were fixed on me for a few seconds before he turned around with his own coffee.

I stood up with a lot of finding my own balance. I grabbed the cup and went down to sit on the bed.

The warm aroma was steaming from the cup and soothed the headache I was feeling. It was a long time since I had a proper cup of coffee, so this was a welcome surprise.

While I was sitting on the bed and drinking my beverage, I processed what happened the last couple of days and I decided to go to find Frank.

I stumbled into the living room with my half full cup of coffee. Frank was sitting on the couch, staring out of the window with the television on as background sounds. He was wearing a long sleeved, dark blue t-shirt with black skinny jeans. He looked awfully good in that outfit, even though it was so simple.

He had a nice living room. Everything was dark, just like his bedroom, but it was still very neat.

"Hey." I said and he looked into my direction.

"Hey." He said absently. "How did you sleep?"

"I slept well. I'm still a bit weak but I'm getting better." I smiled at him but he turned his head away from me to look outside again.

I went to sit next to him on the couch and he didn't acknowledge me for a while.

The sun was going down and sadly the moon wasn't visible this night. It was becoming more breezy and cloudy outside. The cold November-weather was finally starting to show itself.

"I was worried about you, y'know." Frank suddenly said, his eyes still focussed on what happened outside, not giving any attention to the television.

"I'm sorry." I almost whispered.

"Never mind, it's okay." He softly answered.

Frank was playing with the hem of his sleeve. Something just wasn't right about him. The look on his face was strained.

"What happened last night?" he finally asked, still without looking at me.

"I was bitten."

"Really? I totally didn't notice." He finally snapped, now looking at me. "Tell me what happened."

It wasn't a question. He was resolute to know what had happened.

"I was invited to a party where humans were gathered so that we could eat." I started to tell him.

"We? Who is "we"?"

There was a speck of worriedness in his eyes.

"Some mermaid-girl invited me." I said softly.

"Wow, wait. You mean a siren?! Why the fuck would you go with a siren?" he almost yelled.

The worriedness turned into a razing storm of anger.

"I... I.."

Words wanted to form themselves in my mouth but they wouldn't come out. There was so much I wanted to say to him but I couldn't. I wanted to tell him that he is all I have been thinking about for the last couple of weeks but I just couldn't.

"You know what? Never mind. Never –fucking- mind. I'm going for a walk." He growled.

"I... Frank! Don't go." I said to him as he stormed past me to the door.

"Why not? You walked out on me, remember?"

Frank shut the door behind him with a loud bang. I heard him growl and yell out of frustration. I really hoped he lives in a mostly uninhabited area, because if the neighbours would have heard this they would surely come to check if everything was okay over here.

For me it was better to stay in and wait until he returned. I have to admit, what he just said hurt me. A lot. But it was better to let him cool down and let him put his thoughts in order before I would face him again.

I walked back to the living room and put on the volume from the television a bit louder. I wanted to find some distraction to the pain I was feeling in my chest.

Why did I suddenly care so much for this man? How?

As I let myself fall on the couch I pulled up my knees so my legs were against my chest. Some stupid show on National Geographic Channel about count Dracula was on. How ironic. I had hoped it would distract me a bit more but it didn't.

I felt my eyes prickle and tears started to swell up in my eyes. Why do I fuck everything up? I can never do anything right.

While absent-minded watching television, I started to become very tired again. My body was still hurting from last night. I wasn't surprised.

I watched the television for a bit and decided to go back to bed again. I didn't expect Frank to be back anytime soon, so I better take care of myself.

My legs carried my heavy body back to the bed and I let myself fall on the pillows. Everything had that warm scent of Frank. Frank smelled like autumn leaves with the sweetness of honey but with the warmth of cinnamon. I inhaled deep and closed my eyes.

When he would come back, I am going to make this okay. I promise.


	11. Chapter 11

When Gerard woke up again, he heard voices coming out of the living room. Two voices, to be exact. He listened for a while and he knew one of them was Frank and the other one was a woman's voice. Gerard knew he heard the woman's voice before, but he couldn't quite place where he must've heard it, although it sounded very familiar.

Although Gerard didn't know what was going on, he decided to stay in bed a little longer to listen to Frank's voice. Frank was furious when he left the house, so he was just relieved to know that he was safe back home.

Thankfully, he already started to get better. The only downside to that was, even if he was feeling better, the thirst also started to increase.

Suddenly, laughing came out of the living room. That warm and bubbly women's voice he thought he heard before, became very familiar. He decided to check up on who it was, although he was afraid of what he might find. He sat straight up on the bed to climb out of it, but as soon as he left the bedroom, he could hear her voice quite clear.

"Oh Frank, you are so funny!"

_Hayley._

"Oh hell no." Gerard said to himself. "This can't be true."

His pace to the living room fastened. When he stood in front of the door that lead to the room Frank and Hayley were in, he could see that the door was slightly open. Through the crack he could see the back of Hayley's head. Her flaming orange hair was tied up into a messy bun. It was like her neck was presented on a silver plate. Frank was sitting right in front of her, making glances at her neck every time Hayley wasn't looking. Frank couldn't hold himself in anymore and he apparently decided to sit next to Hayley, putting one arm over her shoulders.

Even though Gerard knew this was bad news, he couldn't help the stabs of jealousy he felt hitting his stomach. But still, Hayley was the one in true danger here and he had to do something.

With a loud bang, the door slammed open against the wall. Hayley and Frank looked up with the looks of a deer looking into the headlights of a car.

"Gerard!" Hayley called out.

"What are you doing here?" she said as she stood up to walk up to Gerard.

"Hayley, I am very sorry to tell you this, but I think you need to leave." He said as he felt Frank's eyes burn on his body. When he looked into Frank's direction, his look was filled with pure anger and frustration.

"Yes, Gerard, what are you talking about?" Frank said while his jaw clenched.

"Hayley, listen to me. You have to get out now."

Hayley frantically looked between the two guys. Her look flitted between Gerard and Frank. She didn't know what to do or what to say.

"Hayley, you don't have to leave." Frank said.

"No, no it's fine. I'll... eh... I'll go." Hayley said nervously. He looked one last time at Gerard and she walked away. She wanted to make it look like she wasn't scared, but both the vampires could sense that she was. The way she sped up her pace and the way her heartbeat raised was telling everything they needed to know.

The moment Hayley closed the door behind her, Gerard heard a growl behind him. Even before he could turn around to talk to Frank, Gerard was pushed up against the wall with a hand on his throat.

Frank hissed. His hazel eyes weren't just hazel anymore; they turned dark red. They weren't just the colour of flowing blood, they had the colour of death itself.

"Dude, what the _fuck _is your problem? _Stupida idiota_! I saved your goddamn life!" Frank hissed through his clenched teeth. He was seriously mad. The vein in his neck started to show and his gaze became even darker.

"Don't you dare do something to me. I'll be just fine by myself!" Gerard almost yelled back. He tried to push Frank off and he clawed at his arm, but Frank was too strong. He didn't particularly liked being in this position, but it has been the first contact since that one night at the cemetery.

"You know I could break your neck in a second if I wanted to, right?" Frank spat at him. Although it was more of a warning than an actual question.

Gerard looked him straight in the eye. Frank's gaze softened and his hazel-coloured eyes with specks of red returned. His jaw relaxed and one corner of his mouth curled up.

Frank came closer to Gerard and softly licked his jawline. Even though he didn't want to admit it, he missed Gerard's taste. His blood awakened something in him. For the first time, he didn't want his bitten person dead. The way Gerard's blood flowed out of his veins right into his throat made him feel alive again, even though that sounds very pathetic.

The licks soon became soft kisses and Franks loosened his grip on Gerard's throat. He felt Gerard's hands close around his wrist and he pulled away the hand that was still hanging loosely around his neck.

Unaware of himself, Frank moved closely to Gerard. As he kissed his throat, he felt Gerard's breathing become heavier underneath his lips.

Suddenly, Frank felt a hand softly placed on his cheek and he looked up into Gerard's hazel eyes. For a moment, they shared a look before Gerard softly placed his lips on Frank's.

Frank released himself from Gerard. Frank had a broken look on his face. His eyebrows were furrowed and his jaw tensed up again.

"Gerard, are you sure?" he asked.

"Yes... I think I am." Gerard answered softly. For the last couple of days in bed, he could really think about what his feelings were and how he exactly felt about that one night at the cemetery. The thing that was really going one is that he was afraid to love. He had lost his true love 80 years ago and he couldn't really cope with that until he met Frank. He had to let go of the solitude and accept that he wanted Frank.

"Because I want you to know that I need you and I don't know how I'd react if I had to lose you again." Frank spoke softly, without looking at the other vampire, his head hanging low.

Gerard placed a hand on his cheek and made him look up at him.

"Trust me, I am sure." He said to Frank. He placed his lips on Frank's and an electric bolt shot through their bodies. Gerard brought his other hand up to Frank's face and held him gently as they kissed.

Frank suddenly pulled himself from Gerard, his hazel eyes now turned red as blood. He hastily took a step back from Gerard, watching his every move.

"Frank, w-what's wrong?" Gerard stuttered.

"This can't be true." Frank said to himself. He frantically looked around the room, looking like an animal in distress. He pulled up his hands to his head and put a firm grip in his own hair.

"What can't be true?"

"This... how?" Frank wasn't even hearing Gerard. He was still talking to himself. When Gerard wanted to take a step in Frank's direction, Frank almost looked like lightning had struck him.

"Frank!" Gerard almost yelled. "Can you please tell me what the hell is happening to you?"

"I... I think imprinted.. you..." Frank tried to make a sentence out of the words he let fall out of his mouth.

"What are you talking about?" Gerard asked him again, this time more firm then the first time.

Frank looked at Gerard as if he could see right through him. His eyes had even transformed to a darker shade of red that almost looked black. His eyes were full of lust and desire, but not in a sexual way. This lust and desire was full of caring and loving.

Frank walked back to his couch and let himself fall on it. He stared straight ahead.

"I think I imprinted on you." He said coolly.

"What?"

"I think I imprinted on you." He said again, this time looking at Gerard.

"Imprinted? What do you mean?"


	12. Chapter 12

**Frank POV.**

"Trust me, I am sure." Gerard said to me as he placed his lips on mine. I felt a whirlwind raging through my body. I felt lightning strike me and I drowned from the feeling of his lips on mine.

I knew it as soon as I opened my eyes. I didn't feel like a living dead anymore, the waves of pure contentness washed over me. At first I couldn't believe what was happening to me, but all the signs were there. Everything was made clear.

Still high on the feeling, I couldn't control the filter that filtered my thoughts and feelings and as a result I was talking gibberish. Words that came out of my mind didn't sound like words.

"This can't be true." I heard myself muttering. I looked frantically around because my vision was blurry and I didn't understand what was happening to me at first. I thought I had experienced this before, but this was so much more. The effect that it had on my body was almost unexplainable.

"This... how?" I continued to ask myself. I had noticed Gerard had taken a step into my direction, but his sudden movement scared me.

Gerard suddenly yelled my name. His words shot through me like he was talking through a megaphone.

"Can you please tell me what the hell is happening to you?!"

I was so confused that I couldn't really explain to him properly what was happening, but I knew damn well what was going on.

"I... I think imprinted… you..."

At first, I thought it couldn't be true. I fucking imprinted on Gerard. What this basically means is, that you have found your soulmate. At least, that's how humans called it. We, as vampires, call it imprinting, because everyone needs a mate in his life. Ten thousands of years ago, a great vampire-deity made a promise to us. And that promise was that none of us deserves to be alone and that we will find our true mate.

"What are you talking about?" Gerard asked firmly. The frustrated look on Gerard's face was understandable, but I just couldn't explain it to him at this moment.

I looked at Gerard and all the pieces of the puzzle started to fall together into a whole. The incomprehensible attraction I had to him, my pure and animalistic desire to drink his blood and not to forget my worriedness when he was gone. If it was any other vampire I would've said that he could go and fuck himself, but this time it was different. I kept thinking about him and my heart was aching because I missed him so much.

I walked back to the couch and let myself fall on it. Still processing everything that happened to me in the last few minutes, I stared out of the window. Somehow, the sounds of birds and cars driving by, relaxed me. It was as if I concentrated myself hard enough on the outside world, nothing could hurt or touch me anymore. "What are you talking about?" I heard Gerard say again. "I think I imprinted on you." I answered him. "What?" I looked him straight in the eye. "I think I imprinted on you." I could see in his gaze that he had a bit of a trouble to process what I just told him. When I looked at him, I wanted him. This time thousand times stronger than I did before. To me, he was perfect. His pointy nose, his raven black hair that was falling in front of his eyes and his ragged, black leather jacket. He looked like the perfect, dark personification of a crow. "Imprinted!? What do you mean?" Gerard asked again.

"Gerard, don't you understand? I just cannot stay away from you." I told him calmly. And it was true. I had a very hard time staying away from him. My heart shattered the evening I found him half-conscious in the woods. I carried him home that night. I got some strange looks but I didn't care. My only purpose was to get him home safely. The only one that bothered me was a witch who came up to ask me where a vampire was going to with an unconscious vampire. I didn't trust her so I told her to fuck off.

Gerard remained silent and only stared at me. In his eyes I could see that he truly understood, but that he didn't wanted to. I wish I could explain in to him in just one single sentence but I simply can't.

"You imprinted on me? But how can it be that I don't feel anything?" he asked.

That hurt. I knew it was possible to happen but I didn't expect it to happen to me.

"Oh." Was everything I could bring out. The words came out almost as a sigh, and to be honest, I had no clue what else I could tell him.

I could see the thoughts race in his mind. They weren't just racing, they were making a bet out of it. He brought his hands up to his head, gripping his hair tight, turning his head and gaze away from me.

"What the _fuck_, Frank!?" he yelled. His hands loosened and he looked at me again. There was Gerard how I first met him; all ragged up with eyes dark like a moonless Sabbath. His gaze was piercing, and as well as I knew this could go either the good way or the absolute wrong way. I tried to explain to him what I felt for him. This could mean the difference between losing him forever and having him by my side.

"G-Gerard, I-I'm so sorry. I never expected this to happen." I stumbled. I couldn't look him in the eye so I just looked at the ground. His gaze intimidated me.

"No." I heard him say. His voice had a sort of velvety softness in it so I looked up, not being scared of him to do something to me.

"I am sorry. I am sorry that I caused this to happen to you."

"Wait, what?" I couldn't believe him. I broke some big and life-changing news to him, and now he is apologizing to _me_? Just, what?

"Look," he continued. "I have feelings for you too, but I don't know if I could give you what you need. I know what imprinting is, okay? I just couldn't comprehend the fact that someone could imprint on me."

Gerard looked away from me and his jaw tightened. His eyes became almost… sad. I didn't understand what he meant with what he said about the fact that he couldn't give me what I needed. He gives me everything I need with just being next to me.

I decided to do something very tricky. This could go horribly well of horribly good.

I slowly walked up to Gerard. Gerard was still looking away from me, having a hard time to confront himself with what just happened.

As soon as I was in front of him, I tried to talk to him.

"Gerard, look at me." I whispered.

No reaction.

"Gerard, please, just... just look at me." I pleaded.

I brought my hands up to his cheeks and slowly turned his face towards my direction.

His touch under my hands felt like velvet and his gaze could pierce you by just looking at you. To me, he was the most beautiful creature to be alive.

I looked in his eyes and I could see that he returned to his normal state. His eyes returned to their normal hazel colour and the look in his eyes was lost and empty. It hurt me to see him like this. I never wanted to hurt him in any way possible.

Still, I got lost in his empty gaze and my autopilot took over. I brought his face to mine and softly kissed his lips. The feeling of his lips against mine has never felt so good. For a second, I thought Gerard was kissing me back, but instead of doing that, he was pushing me off.

"Frankie, please..." he whispered. His voice was broken and he couldn't even look at me. His head was hanging low and I thought I could see a glimpse of a tear. Suddenly he stormed past me and went straight to the door. Right before he opened the door, he turned to me and said: "I love you Frankie, but I can't give you what you need. I know I can give you what you want, but it won't be enough. I'm so sorry."

"Gerard, no. Please don't leave." I stood still, with my feet glued to the ground. I felt broken inside and I couldn't move.

"Please Gerard, don't go."

He didn't answer, he could only look at me.

The door closed and he left me with a churned stomach and a shattered heart.


	13. Chapter 13

**Gerard POV.**

I knew what I did was the right thing to do. I can't give Frank what he needs. What he needs is a person who feels the same for him as he does for me.

I love him. I love him with my whole being and I want him more than I could want any one in my whole life. But I just can't give him what he needs. It's better off this way.

But holy shit, that did hurt.

Somehow, I seem to get myself in the most unpleasant situations and somehow I seem to get out alive. Although this felt like dying on the inside. I felt so stupid. He basically told me he would want to be with me forever and I just walked away from him. Frank is so precious, he deserves more than I will ever be.

As I walked farther away from Frank's apartment, the night started to crawl over this empty town. I had no clue what was going on, but there were no people out on the streets for a change.

Although I knew it was wrong, I craved for booze. I had a... let's call it a certain problem, a few years ago. Drinking wasn't the right thing to do now, but I couldn't give a fuck at the moment.

After I walked a bit further, I came across an open 7/11. This was the perfect occasion to buy some booze and drink my thoughts away. As I walked in the store, the guy behind the counter looked at me funny. Whatever. I looked like crap and that wasn't surprising.

The fluorescent light in the store was so bright my eyes were hurting. If vampires could go up into dust, this would be the moment that I did.

I walked into the booze-isle and decided what I was going to drink. I didn't have money with me, but that didn't matter. As if the guy behind the counter could do anything to me. One snap with my fingers and he is dead.

It still amazes me what I could do to a human if I wanted too. I once let someone choke just by biting his neck, and that while I even didn't put much pressure on his neck.

I made my choice and settled for something strong. I felt I needed this right now. Seriously, I couldn't care less about the percentage of alcohol that was in there, as long as it made my heart a little bit less aching, everything would be okay.

Today I needed something that could make me forget my thoughts. I wanted something that made me forget who I really am. I needed the sensation of being so drunk that I can't even bring out words.

A few years ago I would've hit myself in the face, but tonight it sounded like the most wonderful idea that I ever had.

I pushed the bottle in the inside pocket of my jacket and walked outside. The guy behind the counter was still a bit freaked out, but I got my booze so I couldn't care less.

"That went easy." I said to myself. When I walked outside, I looked into a shopping window until I realized the sight of my reflection.

I was right, I looked like shit.

My cheeks were sunken into my face, my face was even paler than it had been before and the bags under my eyes were becoming even purpler. With my shoulders hanging low and a bottle of whiskey in my hands, I looked pathetic.

Even my reflection was looking disappointed.

How could I sink so low?

I started walking. I didn't care and didn't know where I was going but I needed to walk. The night was still young and I could do as much as I wanted, if I wanted.

While I was walking, I looked up at the stars. They seemed so far away but somehow they seemed to understand me. I felt lonely and only the stars and moon could give me my so much needed comfort.

There is a saying that basically means that you can influence your own wellbeing, and I totally agree with that. Somehow I seem to fuck shit up every time and I wish I had died that night over 90 years ago. It all seems so hopeless. The one I was supposed to marry was murdered, then that devil-woman Josephine tried to kill me too only to use me as her puppet when she couldn't kill me and now I lost Frank.

On the way to wherever I was going, I saw a large oak-tree and I let myself fall again the trunk. I roughly pulled off the cork off the bottle of vodka and started drinking it like it was water.

As the bitter flows of alcohol entered my body, my vision started to blur and my body started to lose its balance. This was the kind of state I loved because there was nothing else but me, my bottle of vodka and the warm fuzzy feeling. Plus the fact that I hadn't drunk in a few days so everything I consumed kicked in harder than I thought.

Somehow, I stood up and walked back to the town for a bit. It was like I could not control myself anymore and my body shifted to auto-pilot.

When I walked through a street with a lot of bars and cafés, I could see two women standing outside. They looked very... familiar. Although I just couldn't put my finger on it where I had seen them before. I tried to zone out from the faint voices I heard talking inside. The heartbeats still fighting their ways into my ears and I started to become lightly tensed up. My thirst for blood was slowly making its way into me again.

I have to admit, I was very intoxicated at this point so my brain didn't function properly and I had no clue of what I was doing whatsoever. I stumbled past the bars and noticed it had come completely dark. The light from the streetlights were coming off very soft. The faint light combines with the talking and the smell perfectly.

One of the women was shooting glances at me, but I was so drunk I couldn't process it properly. It almost looked as if she was smiling. The corners of her mouth curled up in an almost evil grin. The other woman was asking her questions and her talking started to become louder and louder, but I still couldn't process what exactly she was saying.

When I could see the other woman's face better, it felt like I was hit in the face with a brick. Time stood still for a moment and it felt like I was back in time for a few seconds. She looked at me and it seemed like she recognized me for a few seconds. By the look she had in her eyes you could see that her heart was breaking into a thousand pieces.

Those eyes were just too familiar. The beautiful hazel colour had lost its life and her lovely brown hair had become pale.

_Angelique._

The look of heartbreak started to transform into a devilish stare. All the love she was once radiating had become pitch-black and all the joy she once possessed was crimson-red. The warmth she once was radiating, turned ice-cold.

She was wearing the gold locket Josephine took from her when she… murdered her? I thought she was dead all this time. All this time I lived in pain and guilt only to find out she was alive all along. But in this case, she wasn't. The way she is right now is not alive. Even if Josephine put her under her spell or turned her into a witch, she wasn't alive. She was alive just as much as I was and I am a creature of darkness.

Suddenly, I didn't know where I was anymore and I started to become extremely nauseous. My vision blurred and the area started to spin around me. It was as if the only thing I could hear was a loud screeching noise. My hands flew against my ears and tried to dig themselves inside my head like daggers only to make it stop.

Angelique snapped her finger and Josephine let out a high-pitched screech. Suddenly, all the people around me that were just there a few minutes ago, disappeared.

I should've never left Frank alone. He needs me and I need him just as much. In my mind, I tried to focus on Frank, so that if I had to die tonight, I would die with the thought of the one I truly loved on my mind.

Suddenly I got a vision. At first, the only thing I could see were, I think more than a thousand, faces flashing by me. But with a sudden moment, the flashing by stopped at Frank. He was sitting on his couch with his legs curled up and his knees against his chest. His hands were folded over his knees and he rested with his forehead on them. Suddenly, the vision became cleared and I could see his shoulders hitch up and down and I could hear him cry.

I froze.

In my vision, it just felt as if I was standing in front of him, but as hard as I tried I just couldn't reach him. I tried to grab him with my hands and tried to claw my hands through this dimension I was in, but I just couldn't reach him. I let myself fall on my knees while I just couldn't get my eyes off of him. He was so broken and it was all my fault. This all happened because I made a stupid mistake of not listening to myself one again.

In all my frustration, I started to scream. As I screamed, I noticed I was being pulled out of the vision.

"No. no please. Please don't let me leave him!" I cried. I started seeing flashes of where I was laying on the ground in front of Josephine and Angelique.

"Okay, Gerard. Focus. Focus on Frank." I repeated over and over in my head.

I was thrown back into the vision of Frank. He was still crying, but he looked confused. He was frantically looking around, still with wet tears streaming down his face.

"FRANK!" I cried out. He suddenly jumped up.

Could he hear me?

**"****FRANK!"** I cried out again. His eyes widened. He jumped off from the couch and put on his coat before he raced out the door. This was the moment I was thrown back with Josephine and Angelique.

When I tried to open my eyes, I could see Josephine and Angelique standing above me with their hands entwined. I tried to listen to what they were saying, but I couldn't understand as it was in Latin.

I felt myself become incredibly sleepy, but as much as I tried to fight it off, it was of no use.

I drifted away in darkness with the feeling of crying my lungs out.

Frank, where are you?


	14. Chapter 14

**Frank POV.**

The empty feeling that rested in the place where my heart once has been, wasn't going away any time soon. This feeling was here to stay for a long time, I was afraid.

It has been two hours since Gerard walked away and closed the door behind him but it already felt like eternity.

I always fell for the people I couldn't have. I was married once. Her name was Jamia and she was absolutely beautiful. We met right after I came back from the war. She was the owner of a pub in a small Spanish village at the Spanish coast and she was pouring me a drink. We continued to take a drink together and started talking and the talking ended in her bed that night.

She was absolutely amazing. Right after I asked her to marry me, we moved to England and we got our own house. Everything seemed to go absolutely well, until she was accused of witchcraft.

The thing was, she knew what I was and she didn't mind. Other people had their suspicions about me, but I could keep up an amazing poker face and next to that, they were deadly afraid of me. Jamia was goodness itself so she was an easy target and they accused her of witchcraft. Once I had to leave a week or three, she was arrested and thrown in a dungeon. When I came back, they had already tortured her so badly that she died during it. There was nothing I could do to save her anymore.

She once asked me if I could change her. She wanted to be the same as I was and the most important thing was that she wanted to stay alive with me forever. At first I refused her request since I knew how hard it had been for me and I didn't want to put her through that. Yet she persisted on what she wanted, even though I told her many times that the transition would be very hard on her.

I had promised her that I would change her as soon as I came back from the trip, since I didn't want her to be alone during her transition, but I was too late.

After Jamia's death I fled to the land of opportunities to build up a new life, follow the American dream and such and that's how I ended up here.

I still miss her. She knew what I was capable of and she still accepted and loved me. I still don't understand how it was possible, but she did anyways. She accepted me more than even my own family ever did. She must've truly loved me.

Sometimes I wondered how everything had gone if I had changed her. Would we have kids? I will never know. I don't even know if it was possible with me being a vampire and she being a normal human girl, even if I turned her into a vampire.

I always thought I imprinted on her, but apparently I didn't. I loved her very much and very deeply, that was true. I even wanted her to be the mother of my children and to stay by my side forever, but the storm of emotions I got when Gerard kissed me, I haven't felt before.

On the inside it killed me that he didn't feel the same. Why would he even kiss me then? A part of me thought that I had scared him off with my reaction, which I totally didn't meant to. I know I love Gerard very much, but I could have never thought I would be imprinting on him.

Except I did.

So there I was, sitting on my couch in the dark while crying my eyes out. It wasn't a pretty sight, let me tell you that. It was more pathetic. Time didn't feel like it was passing and the hurt didn't leave. They say time heals all wounds but at this moment that was very hard for me to believe.

After a while, while my crying seemed to decrease, it was almost as if I could hear Gerard calling for me.

"What the fuck is going on?" I heard myself say.

I bet my mind was pulling some sick prank on me.

Then I heard it again. I heard Gerard call my name and it was very clear.

I knew something was wrong. Terribly wrong. So I decided to go out and look what was going on exactly.

I grabbed my coat from the coat hanger and ran out of the door while wrestling to get my coat on.

The weather outside was chilly and something seemed off. As I approached the section of town where the bars were located, there was not a soul out on the streets. That was the first sign to me that something was really wrong.

The atmosphere wasn't the way it usually was. It was cold and empty instead of the lively atmosphere that was around normally.

Something wasn't right. My gut feeling was going lunatic and even the smell was… different. Something bad was about to happen.

Total silence. Not the murmuring from the people out on the streets, not even the chirping of the birds was to be heard. I haven't been in many situations where I've experienced such total silence. I looked around to look at the surroundings and took it all in.

The only ones that accompanied me were the moon and the setting sun. Somehow Gerard and I were much like the moon and the sun. Complete opposites, but the one couldn't be whole without the other.

Suddenly I heard a deafening screech and my feet froze to the ground.

This was bad, very bad.

I started to run towards the direction the sound came from and what I found there made me sick to my stomach. There was Gerard, laying on the ground with a crimson red, sphere of energy around him. On both his sides were standing two witches hand in hand, chanting some old verses. I had absolutely no clue what they were saying but from the energy that it was radiating, this wasn't the slightest of good.

The purest of rage washed over me when I looked at them. Gerard was twitching and unconscious underneath them. This wasn't supposed to be happening.

I let out a primal growl before I ran to them as fast as I could. My lips curled over my teeth, my fangs clearly visible. I could feel my eyes becoming the crimson color they used to be when I was hunting. This was the dark side of me taking over, and I quite liked it in this situation.

They were not going to take Gerard away from me. I'd rather have him alive and not wanting to speak to me than dead. If he died, that meant that I didn't have any purpose to live anymore. This isn't about me being self-centered and wanting him to be mine and mine alone, this was me wanting to sacrifice my life for him.

Within seconds I reached them. The only thing I could see was pure red. It didn't matter to me who was in front of me, they would end up dead soon.

I got to fight the younger witch as soon as possible. She was an easy target, it was clear that she didn't have any experience with fighting whatsoever. I grabbed her hair very harshly and brought her neck to my throat. As my fangs sank into her white neck, they bit down harder than they've used before. Within second I ripped open her throat and she went up in dust. Her body went up in millions of tiny fibers, going up into air.

Before I knew it, I felt myself being suffocated by something I could not see. I was hurled up into the air and being held upside down.

There was this bitch, who had Gerard under her spell, in front of me. She was grinning at me. Not a normal grin, no, an evil grin that even sent shivers down my spine. Again, I growled at her, but she only seemed to laugh.

She didn't say a word, she only glared at me.

She broke her glare and got something from behind her back. A wooden stake.

_Fuck._

I refused to let her get me so easy. I screamed but there was no sound and it only cost energy that I needed so much right now. I tried to squirm from her invisible tentacles that were surrounding me, but I just couldn't get away.

I started to accept slowly that this could mean my death. Somehow, I never imagined my death to be like this. Don't get me wrong, I knew I had to die somehow, but I'd imagined it more to be happening in an epic fight instead of being held upside down by a witch.

She was slowly coming closer and I shut my eyes. I wasn't afraid to die, the only thing I was truly afraid of, is what was going to happen to Gerard after I am gone. Only thinking about it made my eyes water.

I felt my tears dropping from my eyes and while I was trying to convince myself that everything would be okay somehow, I felt an aching pain, right through my chest.

My eyes shot open and I looked at where my heart was supposed to be.

There it was. The wooden stake was sticking out and I couldn't breathe anymore. At one point I was dry heaving and the witch let me drop on the ground. From what I could feel at this moment, the stake was coming out of my back. I could feel the blood slowly starting to pour out of the wound it had caused. I still tried to support myself on one elbow while my other hand tried to stop the bleeding or at least try to pull the stake out, but it wouldn't help. I glared at the witch but soon my vision was getting one big blur. My body was drained of blood and soon I was laying in a puddle of my own. With the stake being pierced through my windpipe, I was getting more suffocated by the seconds passing.

The witch could only laugh hysterically and then she just disappeared. When she left, the sphere around Gerard disappeared and it instantly woke him up. Gerard was breathing heavily and his movements were spastic. Suddenly, he turned his head into my direction and I heard him scream.

I tried to let myself fall on the ground as gently as possible, but the severe stinging wasn't going away. Still I tried to reach into Gerard's direction, because somehow, I still had a little spark of hope that I was going to make this. It was no use; my vision went black and my body was going numb. At one moment, there was just only the smell of blood and I knew that this was the ending of my story. I lost too much to be even resurrected.

I could hear Gerard running into my direction. I could hear him beg for me to wake up while I felt him picking me up to just lay in his arms.

His sobbing was the only thing I was aware of when my soul left my body. Soon, I knew I had to let go, even if I wanted or not. I had to.

This is how my life was supposed to end.


	15. Chapter 15

**Hayley POV.**

_(4 months after Frank's death.)_

I knew he wasn't dead. He couldn't be. I had to see it for myself to even believe it he was gone forever.

It had been a few months since Frank's death and I was determined to find out. I had to see if his body was decayed or bloated from the heat. As gruesome as it sounds, I had to know. I didn't care if it would traumatize me, I just needed answers.

The night Gerard walked in on us he told me his secret after knowing me for many years. I had been asking a few questions because I started noticing there were a few… differences between me and him. He didn't age, he didn't eat and most importantly, whenever I cut my hand during bar shifts, what happened from time to time when a glass broke in my hands, he got uncomfortable and wanted to leave as soon as possible.

I'm not really a believer when it comes to mythical creatures. I would mostly laugh in your face if you told me you believe in fairies or that sort of things. But after knowing Gerard for so long and meeting Frank after that, it all suddenly made sense. The differences between us became explainable and I somehow understood what was going on all this time.

The sun started to go down and the cooling air from today surrounded me. The skies were turning to a soft orange surrounded with red streaks. It had been a hot day in Italy.

I wasn't here for only making fun and having a vacation though. I had a mission that I just couldn't leave alone. I had to know what was going on and I needed to see this for myself. I needed answers for the questions that came up and I just couldn't let go.

When I arrived at the airport in Rome, I went straight to the archives to get to find out where Frank was buried. When he came at the bar, he always spoke fondly about his Italian heritage and even more proudly of his family. Even though his parents had abandoned him a long time ago, he still treasured the memory of them. Yes, it was hard for him to talk about, I could see the pain in his eyes, but he was a proud man and he tried his best to hide his suffering.

Eventually, when I arrived at the archives in the city hall, I quickly found out where Frank was buried. Thankfully, he was buried in his family grave.

I could guess that it was a hard one to get him buried there, because the funeral society couldn't find the link from Frank to his parents. Thankfully, Gerard made them do it. I have no clue how he did it, but knowing Gerard it didn't went smoothly for the people from the funeral society.

When Frank and I spoke about his family, he told me that he wanted to be buried in his family grave.

So here I was. Wandering around a graveyard. I couldn't speak a word Italian, so I just looked around for the surname Iero.

A lot of tombstones were lonesome and old. You could see that no one had visited them in a long time.

Somehow I wondered who was laying beneath it. Those people once had a family, maybe even children, a husband or a wife. It was very sad to see them in a state like this.

The sun started to go down and the cold autumn air swept around me. When I walked a bit further, suddenly my feet froze to the ground.

"Iero."

Frank. That is Frank's name.

I stood in front of a huge marble tomb. The grave looked like one of a royal family. The marble angels on top of the arch were looking down on me with a piercing look. I suddenly became very cold.

The door to the tomb was slightly ajar. When I went to touch the doorknob, the door was feeling very heavy and made a screeching sound when I pushed it open.

I stepped into the tomb and felt chills running down my spine. The atmosphere wasn't peacefully, it felt more like death was watching my every move. At the same time, it didn't made me stop looking for the answers I wanted. I flicked on my flashlight and let my eyes explore the tomb.

There were 5 mausoleums, two with his parents name on it and the other three were grandparents or other children, I assumed. I never realized how old Frank was until now.

His parents were both born in the 80's of the 1300's. His mother died in 1316 and his father in 1350. I just couldn't understand the pain Frank had to live with. The knowing that his parents were dead for so long…

That means frank had to be over 700 years old. The realization hit me but I had to get out of it very soon. I was here for a solid purpose and I had to find out.

Even after everything that has been said and done, it looked like his parents had seen the mistake that they've made in the past. In the tomb there was a mausoleum made with Frank's name on it.

The mausoleum with Frank's name on it was made out of beautiful white marble. The black streaks through the marble seemed to accentuate Frank's name even more and made me more determined to get the cover from the mausoleum off.

Getting off the cover was harder than it looked. The top was heavy, but I could feel they didn't secure it properly so I was determined to get it off. Eventually, my hands and arms started to hurt from all the pushing and pulling. I was about to give up until I suddenly heard a cracking sound. Finally, I got the damned thing moving.

When I got it as far as to move the top, it became easier and easier. The lid fell off with a loud bang from which I prayed to whoever was up there, that bystanders didn't hear me.

There he was. Laying peacefully. His hands were folded over his chest and he was wearing a beautiful fancy suit. His cheeks were still sunken and he was even paler then the last time I had seen him. The thing that really broke my heart, was an envelope that was put in his hands. It wasn't just a normal envelope that the bereaved left in a coffin for their deceased loved ones. No, this was different. The writing on the envelope was Gerard's handwriting.

Gerard was taking the news very bad. The last time I spoke to him was just before he flew off to Italy to arrange the burial and after that I hadn't seen him again. It has been a few months and I was worried.

Gerard had always been a bit self-destructive. I knew he was a vampire too, but he still wasn't ready to talk about his past. When I asked about it, I could see the hurt in his eyes and I didn't dare to ask any further questions. He was such a sweet and caring guy, I wish he didn't had to go through this all.

When I looked at Frank, something was off. He wasn't decayed. He wasn't bloated. He just still looked like... Frank. It was still the Frank I knew.

"To whoever is up there, if you are fucking with me; this isn't funny." I whispered.

I knew it! He wasn't dead. He was just unconscious!

I tried to shake him but there was no reaction. I made as much sound as I could with yelling and stomping on the ground, not caring if anyone would hear me. I followed my instinct but he didn't react to anything.

Suddenly, another idea hit me. I stood still and looked at my wrists. The veins were perfectly visible under my skin, even in the dark. I looked at Frank again and then back at my wrist.

The outcome of this could go extremely well of extremely wrong. I was willing to take the risk.

Maybe this would work. If he still was alive, he hadn't drunk in a really, really long time. The only thing that could wake him up right now would be blood.

I hurriedly looked in my bag to find something that was sharp enough to cut myself. Within a few moments, I found my old, trusty pocket knife.

Slowly, I stood up and put the knife to my wrist. As much as I hated this, I knew I just had to. The blade felt cool and sharp against my skin, but I needed to do this.

I swiftly sliced my wrist open and as soon as I did that, the blood gushed out. At first I started to panic, the amount of blood that was coming out of me wasn't healthy, I knew that for sure. Soon the blood started to fall on the ground and the silent tomb was filled with the dripping-sounds of the warm, red liquid.

This was the moment, I had to bring my wrist to his mouth to see if he would react to it. I tried not to stain his clothes but that soon failed miserably. It already looked gruesome when nothing really happened at this point.

I put my bleeding wrist against his mouth and I thought I could see some sort reaction. I still decided to wait for a moment because it could just be my mind playing tricks on me. I soon found out it wasn't.

Frank was reacting on my blood. His mouth started to open slightly and I could see his eyes were moving under his closed eyelids. The frantic moving of his eyes soon started to become heavier and next to that, his breathing started to get going.

I felt the blood streaming into his mouth and I prayed he wouldn't attack me.

Suddenly, his breathing started to become heavier and his eyes flung open. His hands grabbed hold of my wrist and his eyes flung open. He intensely gazed at me.

His eyes were red as blood and I had to say I started to panic at this point. How could I be so stupid? I should've know Frank was extremely confused right now and the only thing he wanted right now was to feed.

He looked me straight in the eye with a look that could see right through me. Chills ran down my spine. His grip was tight and firm as I started to escape from it. The only problem was that we wouldn't let go. I felt a sharp sting and his teeth sank into my wrist and I knew that was bad news eventually.

His face wasn't the Frank I knew anymore. As he sucked up my blood, his face became evil and his aura became dark.

I felt myself becoming light in my head and I knew that I lost a lot of blood. I would fall to the floor eventually and that meant my death.

Let's be honest, what could I, a normal and human girl, do against a vampire who had more powers than a human being could ever have? Exactly, nothing. I could do nothing except surrender to whatever was coming to get me. It may be death, it may be unconsciousness if Frank came to his senses on time. Either way; it was worth it. I trust him.

My eyelids started to become heavy and my legs turned into a wobbly mess. I let myself fall on the ground. Besides, what could I do?


	16. Chapter 16

**Gerard POV.**

The only way to healing is destruction. Before getting to a better point in life you have to go through darkness and that's exactly what I was planning on doing.

The way Frank gurgled up his own blood made me want to die myself. If I hadn't left, none of this would have happened. Before I walked out on him, we had a fight about him imprinting on me. I never knew how it felt and I couldn't imagine he could imprint on me. I just simply couldn't believe it, so I left.

But the moment I saw him lying on the cold asphalt, reaching out to me, I knew I imprinted on him. The whirlwind of emotions and visions of everything we went through together, flashed right before my eyes. Our first meeting, our first killing, and the first time he kissed me that night at the cemetery.

The nightmares that followed were the worst. The pinpoint where his eyes went foggy had clamped itself in my thoughts. I couldn't think of anything else because the only thing I could think of was a dying Frank right in front of me.

In my nightmares, Frank begged me to make it stop. I ran and ran and ran, but I couldn't get to him. His arm reached out to me with blood streaming out of his mouth. And the look is his eyes… oh god, how he was looking at me. His gaze full of fear and despair. His hand stretched out towards me to make him hold on to life, but I couldn't save him.

I failed.

_I couldn't save him._

After the funeral was arranged, everything went downhill. I had no one to live for anymore. I was lost.

I searched for comfort, but the only thing that could give me comfort was the warm embrace of alcohol. And to be honest, not even that could help me from myself. I went full into self-destruction-mode, besides, what else could stop me? The one I loved was dead, and I hated myself for realising it when it was too late. I was too blind to see the signs that made it all so clear.

At one moment, even the alcohol could give me the warmth I so much needed. So I decided to try something I tried so many times before all this.

Before I even realized it, I got too far. The ice-cold, red liquid streaming out of my pale skin just dripped on the floor. I didn't care anymore. Nothing could console me or the pain I was in. I wanted out and for me this was the only escape.

The feeling of wanting to die returned like an old friend, a shadow following me everywhere I went. And that was exactly what it was, a shadow. It was literally everywhere where I was, even at nighttime.

Nighttime terrorized me, next to the heart-shattering nightmares I had, I was surrounded and consumed by the shadow. The old friend wasn't so friendly anymore and it made me do the stuff where Frank would've hated me for. At a sudden point I ran out of tears and I could only stare into the nothingness that I called my life.

I stayed in Italy after I arranged the funeral, I just didn't bother to return to my hometown. Hayley knew I was in Italy, and that was the only thing she needed to know. She didn't needed to know what I wanted to do to myself and I surely didn't want her to worry about me, because I simply wasn't worth it.

I visited Frank's grave every day for at least two months. I have no idea how long I watched his grave at one point. Time was creeping by so slowly I didn't even realize it existed anymore. The cold marble from the tomb had become my home and I watched over his grave like a mother watching her child sleep peacefully. I wanted to be sure he wasn't hurting anymore. I wanted to make right everything I'd failed to save.

After about four months I decided I had to get some food somehow. My energy was starting to run low and if I wasn't careful I would rob the graves from their bodies just to get one drop of the substance I craved so much.

I wandered around the old streets of Rome. The streets were small and tortuous, with little shops and boutiques. I visited the bars and café's to look out for some possible victims. I had seen a few, but they were accompanied by friends or acquaintances, so it was too risky.

When I wandered into a less crowded part of town, I saw a pamphlet for a masquerade and I decided to go. Maybe I could lure someone in to kill. Yes, that sounded like a particularly good idea.

The ball was at night, and the combination of drinking and killing sounded perfect to me. The constant craving of blood started to get the better of me because my veins were starting to scrape together like sandpaper. Besides, nighttime is my moment and these combinations were perfect for a suicidal bastard like me. Maybe the murmuring of the people around me could somehow turn the screaming voices in my head a bit down.

What could be a better opportunity to kill than a masqueraded ball, in another country and on a different continent? There was nobody to recognize me so therefore nobody who could stop me.

The smell of the people around me made me want to attack immediately, but I had to keep myself down. This was the longest I had gone without drinking blood, so somehow I was proud of myself for not killing anyone the moment I arrived. I tried it once, killing directly. It didn't end well. The police caught me and after I killed every single policemen I had to flee to another state. It's not something I'd recommend.

I made a beeline to the place where the drinks were served. It was a small table with several bottles of different brands of alcohol. The smell of cheap beer was overwhelming, so I decided to just go with it and emptied two glasses in a few minutes. The buzzed effects from the alcohol already made their way into my vision and made it blurry.

This was nice.

My legs started to walk to wherever they were feeling like going to. I took another, hell lot of a stronger drink with me and somehow I ended up with a girl on a bench on the edge of the terrain where the ball was held.

The ball was organized on a huge square in the center of the city. The sand and terracotta-colored buildings towered over it. In the air hung small lamps with bright-colored lamps. All the colors stood off against the pitch-black sky filled with bright stars. It looked absolutely amazing.

When talking with the girl, I didn't even realize what I was saying to her or what I was talking with her about. The only thing I could hear clearly was the beating of her heart and the only thing I could focus my vision on were the veins braided under her olive skin. Every time when she flipped her hair over her shoulder, the scent of fresh and healthy blood came flowing towards me. If we were alone, I would've let my fangs sunk in her neck within a second.

But the only thing that stopped me, was that we weren't alone.

Behind the walls of the buildings was a park. If I could just lure her to that park, I could have my way with her.

She started to make moves on me and she even shuffled a bit towards me. She smiled at me and I could see in her eyes that she wanted more from me than only a drink or even a kiss. This was a good sign. If I asked her if she would come with me, she would definitely say yes, so that's a good start.

I took her hand and stood up, pulling her with me into the direction of the park. I made sure there was nobody looking for us, so I looked around and…

Wait.

On the other side of the square stood a girl with flaming orange hair.

Was that... was that Hayley? There was only one girl with flaming orange hair like hers and that could only be Hayley.

She was on the other side of the square, smiling widely. I could've sworn she had...

It started to dawn on me; she had fangs.

But how?

The moment I let go of the girl I was holding hands with, I started walking towards her. First slowly, then I sped up my pace. Suddenly, there were people walking in front of me and when I checked again, she was gone.

I frantically looked around me, but there was no sign of Hayley. It almost couldn't be true that she was here in Italy. The last time I spoke to her was back in America and I kind of expected her to still be there.

I started to look through the crowd. I ran and bumped into people, but I could give less than a fuck at that moment. I scanned every face there was, but there was no one who even looked the slightest bit like Hayley.

Was I starting to go crazy? I had to. There was no other way than going crazy. I could've sworn it was Hayley, but it was possible that the booze was having too much of an impact on me and that my mind was playing sick tricks on me.

I had a few hallucinations since Frank died, but I hadn't had them for a while. The first hallucination of him, was exactly one week after he passed. I was sitting in a dark forest, just trying to be alone with my thoughts, and there he was. He pleaded me to make it stop and to come and get him. I started to panic badly so I pushed the vision of Frank away as hard as I could. But the question was; what did I do to make them return this instant?

Suddenly the sounds around me started to get too loud and the faces started to become too much and I started to panic. My breathing became hitched and suddenly I wasn't getting air anymore, so I ran.

I didn't mind where I was going, as long as it was away from here.

As soon as I got the chance, I ran into a small alley and let myself fall against a wall. Finally, I was alone for a second.

I tried to concentrate on breathing normally because I was panting heavily, it started to stabilize. It all seemed like a bad dream.

Suddenly, in the corner of my eye I could see somebody coming towards me. The shadow came closer and closer.

"Hey there, are you okay?" the shadow spoke in poor English.

I could see a face forming in the shadow. It was a man from around 50 years old with a wrinkled face and dark brown eyes. His hair already started to turn gray at his temples. He actually looked quite old for his age.

Before I realized it, I launched myself at the man and pinned him down. I looked him in the eye before I bit him. His look was a mix between terror and astonishment but to be completely honest, I couldn't care less.

The blood was streaming into my mouth and it was the most amazing feeling in the world. It had been such a long time ago for me to finally drink. I was a withered desert and this was the oh-so-needed rainfall. My scrunched up veins started to feel alive again and I felt the power I once had return into my body.

Suddenly I heard somebody jumping over the roofs. I heard an object flying over my head and I could see it from the corner of my eye. I had no idea what was going on but I decided to just get back to the square where the masquerade was held. If something was about to go down, I would be among people and hopefully nobody would notice me.

When I started to walk, I could see the figure jumping over my head again. It wasn't only jumping, it was also giggling. I decided to run, this just couldn't end well.

After I arrived at the square again, I decided to go up into the crowd. I didn't trust that jumping figure. I knew that if it wanted to fight me, I would win. The square was even more crowded then when I left earlier. People were dancing along the tunes of the music

When I was back at the ball and the party was still going, I heard a loud scream. I hastily looked up to see where it came from, but the only thing I could hear was a lot of commotion in the center of the square. When I walked through the crowd that was slowly gathering around where the yelling came from, I saw a glimpse of that flaming orange hair again.

This wasn't happening right now. I could not believe my own eyes.

I slowly walked forward, not realizing my legs were still walking. On the ground, there was Hayley, drinking blood from some human-girl's neck. It was total silence for a moment, but suddenly, everyone started to scream and run to get out of this place. My feet were frozen to the ground while everyone was running and trying to get the hell out of here.

Hayley couldn't scare me, not even if she tried for a thousand years. She has always been such a kind and sweet girl, you cannot tell me that she would change much, even if she was a... a vampire.

I slowly started to walk towards her when she finished her meal. She looked up to me with a broad smile.

"Hayley?..." I asked with disbelief.

"Hi Gerard. It's been a while, hasn't it?" she answered me, in the typical friendly and genuine way she always did. If I was right, she hadn't changed much indeed. The situation was a bit awkward but not unpleasant, in spite of the situation we were in.

"We're quite she same now, aren't we?" she asked timidly.

I grinned.

"Yeah, we are. Sort of." I answered her.

We looked at each other for a few moments, me trying to get used to her new appearance.

She softly smiled at me. I could see that she found it hard to make eye contact with me. Her eyes turned into a dark crimson in contrast to her normally green eyes. Her once rosy cheeks made place for a skin of porcelain and when she smiled, the well-known fangs appeared.

"Who did this to you?" I hesitantly asked her.

"If you want the answer to that, I think you should look around."

I didn't understand what she was telling me. Who could have done this to her? The reason I never drank her blood was because I could see she was too good to be taken away from this world, so what kind of monster could have done this to her?

She slowly stood up, looking up at me as if she wanted to show me something beautiful and amazing. She softly placed her hand on my arm to make me turn around to see.

At first I couldn't understand where I had to look, but then it hit me.

There was a figure standing a few meters away from me. Everyone was frantically running and yelling to get away, but the only thing I could see was him. It was like a flashlight flicked on in a dark room. He pulled me to him like a moth to a burning candle.

The figure slowly started to take of his mask as the corners of his mouth slightly curled up, showing off his pearl-white fangs.

There he was, like a light in the darkness.

It was Frank.


	17. Chapter 17

**Gerard POV.**

Pain is only here to protect us. To protect us from what is eventually going to kill us. Pain is the first sign that something is wrong in the body, may it be physical pain or mental pain. If you scrape your knee or you bump your toe against the furniture, you know something is wrong. And when you check it out to examine it, you can check it out if it needs some proper care or not, and then you just go on with your day. As simple as that.

Mental pain is way more complicated, simply because most of the time you don't know what's wrong with you. You can feel the aching numbness in your heart, you can't bear to look at your own reflection in the mirror or just the most simple things as waking up become the most difficult task of the day so far. To others who haven't experienced it, it is simply unexplainable. It's just there and you can't make it go away with a band aid or some over-the-counter medicine.

Sometimes I wish I could still sleep whole days away, coping with everything I was feeling would be so much easier.

Most of the time, I couldn't even understand myself. At one point I couldn't handle anything I was dealing with and the other moment I couldn't give less than a fuck. Sometimes I would stare into the darkness so long I couldn't even remember for how many hours I've been sitting on my bed.

But how can it be that pain can be so addicting, too?

If pain is meant to warn us, why am I being so attracted to it? If pain was meant to push me away as far as possible, how can it be that I want to be as close as I could get?

Pain had become a trusted friend. It just was always there, never leaving my side. When I cried, it was there, when I was happy, it was still there, as complicated as that may sound.

I recognized it in Frank and that was the hardest part. Frank had experienced the same pain as me and even more important; Frank caused me the pain I was addicted to. The old trusty feeling that would never leave my side, but it felt good. It felt familiar.

The look in his eyes before I walked away, revealed everything I ever needed to know. He was familiar with this feeling and it was here to keep him comfort for the time that I would be gone. It was like I could hear the cracks that formed in his heart, as if I could hear it shatter. At that moment, my own heart shattered too.

When Frank was gone, my pain turned into anger, from anger into rage, from rage into loneliness and from loneliness into jealousy. The anger was felt from the abandonment and the rage felt from pure frustration of not being able to do something. And loneliness... Well; I don't think that needs a clear explanation. I found my mate and I realized it only when he was gone.

The jealousy I felt was from a whole different caliber. I was jealous at Frank and I was jealous at death. Frank had death and death had Frank and I wanted both. I wanted Frank to be mine and mine alone. I was jealous of death because I was tired of living, I just couldn't go on anymore. The fact that I had tried too many times to kill myself, and it never worked, explained why I was jealous. I felt rejected and alone.

When I look back on my past life, I hadn't experienced more emotions that just dull pain in all sorts and shapes. The feeling of being lost. The feeling of grief. The feeling of hopelessness; it was all too familiar. It was almost boring, almost. It kept me busy, still.

The sort of emotion that washed over me when I saw Frank standing on the other side of the square, I hadn't felt before. There was a warmth building up in my chest that felt like it was going to explode within the minute. I wanted to run to him and kiss him and to never let him go again.

But instead of doing what I wanted to badly, I did the exact opposite. My feet froze to the ground and my head was spinning. My mind was going crazy because I just couldn't actually believe it was him. I was sure my mind was playing tricks on me again and I had the feeling that this was all a dream or that I was hallucinating, this simply couldn't be real.

I turned around and ran, I had to get away from the chaos in my head. I ran away from the square, up into the forest. The tornado of thoughts and memories that was forming inside of my head, wasn't going to be stopped by itself so I needed to get away as soon as possible.

The pain I felt all these months, caused me to not trust myself anymore in which I couldn't see what was real and what wasn't.

I ran into the dark forest until my lungs gave up. When I looked around me, I could see nothing more than just trees, darkness and a pale and heavy moon shining above me. There was nothing more to hear. The muffling sounds from the screaming at the square disappeared and the only sounds that surrounded me were the sounds of an owl flying by or the sonar from a bat that was flying over my head.

I let myself fall against an oak and I slid down. I curled myself up into a ball, knees folded against my chest. This just wasn't happening. This couldn't be real.

He died in my arms. I went to his grave and I had actually seen him be put in his coffin. I was there when they closed the coffin. How? Just how?

I needed to go back to the cemetery. I needed to see what had happened, because this just all felt like a hallucination to me.

The cemetery was dark and quiet. The heavy feeling of grief washed over me as soon as I arrived. Still afraid to find the answers I was looking for, but oh so desperately to find out. On the other side, I didn't want him to be in that coffin. I wanted him to be alive again so I could tell him what I felt and more important; what I found out about myself regarding to him.

When I walked towards the mausoleum, my steps became heavier and the cold air I was breathing in, became smothering. With the mausoleum in my sight I couldn't concentrate properly anymore and I almost stumbled over some random stones.

When I arrived at the mausoleum, I softly pushed open the door, being afraid of what I would find. And the thing I dreaded so much, became the truth.

His coffin was pushed open, and the faint smell of blood hung in the air like velvet. My legs became weak from the shock and I fell onto my knees. As soon as I hit the cold, marble floor, I started to cry. All this time I had beaten myself up over his death, I blamed myself and I wanted to be in his place and as soon as I started to get used to this, he suddenly pops up out of nowhere. Not to forget that Hayley turned into a beautiful vampire because of him.

Everything just went so fast and I couldn't keep up. Everything that was happening around me confused me and I didn't know what was real and what wasn't.

I softly started sobbing, not knowing something approached me and kneeled next to me.

"Finally, there you are." A voice said softly. He put his arms around me and hugged me tightly.

I recognized the voice. As hell I did. I was too scared to open my eyes, scared that it would be a dream after all.

"Gee…" he sighed. He softly caressed my cheek with his thumb.

"Open your eyes and look at me." He whispered into my ear.

"No..." I sobbed into his chest. My hands were almost clawing through his clothes, afraid that he would be gone again the second I would let him go.

I was so confused. It felt like my mind was playing tricks on me and at this moment, I was too mentally unstable to keep up with the rhythm of happening events. First Hayley who appeared in front of me with her teeth into some humans' neck, then all the chaos from the people who were afraid, and to top it all off; Frank standing right in front of me, smirking at me like nothing ever happened.

Then it hit me. The pure frustration and anger from the past months started to pour out of my system and as much as I regretted it, I started to hit Frank in his chest. It didn't want to cause him any pain, it was just bottled up emotions flowing out of my system. Luckily I didn't hurt him, because after all, I was too weak to actually hurt him.

Frank hushed softly at me as he grabbed my wrists to calm me down. He didn't hold me firmly, he just took my wrists so I would calm down a little.

As Frank held my wrists down, I opened my eyes to look at him. It was very hard at first, the tears that kept building up didn't help my vision, but after a few moments I could see him clearly. I almost forgot how beautiful he was. And his scent, oh yes, his scent. It smelled like being safe and coming home at the same time.

Time stood still when I looked him in his eyes. He didn't change at all. He was still the same. The look in his eyes was gentle and caring and he smiled softly at me, his fangs still showing through and his eyes still full of hope.

"Gee, are you okay?" he asked me.

"I... what? Am I okay?" I asked him, suddenly feeling very offended.

"Yes?" he asked confused.

"Am I okay!?" I started raising my voice.

"Am I _okay_?!" I repeated. "You were gone for four months. I arranged your funeral, you died in my arms, I visited your grave _every day, _and then you ask me if I am okay?!" I continued. I became angry at him, how dare he think that I am the slightest bit of okay after everything that had happened. He was gone for so long and suddenly he appears again and expects me to be okay with all this?

"Gee, I-I'm sorr-." He mumbled.

"No, Frank, I know you can't help it but what the fuck?!" I cut him off. My voice cracked at the end of the sentence.

He looked away from me, not knowing what to say. His breathing became hitched and his lower lip started trembling. He let go of my wrists and let his own arms hang loosely, looking surrendered.

"I just missed you so much and the first time I see you after all this time, I hoped you would be happy to see me." he whispered and looked at the ground. He was defeated and didn't know what to say anymore. When he looked at me, his eyes were filled up with tears, one escaping and rolling down his cheek.

Guilt washed over me when I looked at him. How could I be so selfish? I should be happy to see him, I would wait for him forever, after all. Even if it did take 500 years for him to wake up, I'd still be waiting for him.

"Oh Frankie… I'm so sorry…" I said to him. Suddenly I felt very panicky, afraid to have scared him off.

I wiped his tears away and took his face in my hands. He was cold, but it was the familiar cold I was used to. He is the answer to my sudden pain ebbing away. The skin on skin contact felt so good after all this time, even if it was only the contact on my hands. It felt otherworldly. Angelic almost.

I didn't know what was going on between the two of us. In the past few months I've had so many new experiences that I just lost track, but it was worth it. When I looked at him, a storm arose in my heart and I knew this was where I was meant to be.

For a split second I looked at him and he looked at me. His eyes were still the same color as they've always been and they still had the same fire in them as I was used to. That was so typical about Frank, his eyes had this gaze and passion in them that I just couldn't explain. I haven't seen it in other people or other vampires, just only him. His eyes will always be mesmerizing to me, I was sure about that.

His eyes flitted to my lips several times, and I knew what he wanted because I wanted the same so desperately.

With my hands still on his cheeks, I slowly pulled him to me and before our lips touched, I could feel his breathing on my lips. That alone was enough to make me want him even more. He grinned one second before he hungrily pushed his lips against mine.

The taste on my lips was still salty from the tears I had shed, but he kissing me made it only more consoling. His lips felt like velvet against mine as they danced against each other.

We kissed lazily, there was little lust present, but even more passion. We didn't kiss in a sexual way, it was just lovingly and I could make out from it that he just missed me the same way as I missed him.

I wonder what he was feeling when he was laying in his coffin. Could he feel? Could he hear? Was he even conscious? There were a bunch of questions floating in my head that I had to remember myself to ask Frank when the time was right. Right now, the only time was for us to be with each other and for me to make him feel welcome and wanted, something I failed to do so in the past.


	18. Chapter 18

_**Frank POV.**_

Dying doesn't sound as fun as it seems. There is no bright white light or some old dude with a long beard waiting for you at the gates of heaven. There is also no hell with the chances of burning up into eternity, which at this moment disappointed me. I also somehow expected to see my parents and little sisters in the afterlife, but even their faces became translucent and faded away after a little while. No, there was no peace for me to find in death, only sorrow and loneliness.

And that is what is was like for me; staring off into darkness, not knowing what was happening or what was going to happen. I was just waiting for things I didn't even knew excisted.


	19. Chapter 19

_**Gerard POV.**_

Frank and I stayed in Italy for a few weeks. There he showed me where he had lived and he told me more about his parents. He also told me about the siblings I never knew he had.

He was the firstborn and only son of the family. He was the oldest and he had three little sisters; Lucrezia, the youngest, and the twins being Magdalena and Isabella. Lucrezia was still a toddler when Frank was being sent away. He couldn't remember much from her, except that she was a very playful and energetic child. Frank always remembered her as a pixie because she looked like one. She had big, hazel Bambi-like eyes and soft brown curls.

Magdalena and Isabella were 5 years older than Lucrezia. They had longer, golden-blonde hair and the same hazel eyes as the little girl. The twins adored Frank and cried heavily when they knew he had to go.

"They wanted me to stay, even though they knew what I was and what I was capable of." Frank told me. He tried to avoid eye contact but I could still see that the look in his eyes was broken. After what happened all those years ago, he had never seen his sisters again.

The tombstones said that Magdalena had become 45 years old and her twin sister Isabella 56 years old. Lucrezia never reached the age of 20.

Although he missed his parents, he could never overcome the pain and feelings of self-loathing he got because of them. They sent him away. If he wasn't even good enough for his own parents, how could he be good enough for the people close to him?

Days passed since our reunion and we started to get back to America. After all, the thing Frank really wanted was to go home. We still traveled around for a few days. We went to the town in Spain where he had met Jamia and showed me around for a little bit. The house where they had lived had been long gone and it was hard for Frank to comprehend that everything he had known simply didn't exist anymore. The days passed and every place that Frank had known or been had changed so much. The broken and at the same time confused look in his eyes became worse and worse so I decided it was time to go.

"So, eh, do you have any idea where you'll stay once we get back home?" Frank suddenly asked out of the blue. There was a nervous tone in his voice.

"I don't know. I think I might have to get used to traveling around again since I don't have anywhere to stay." I answered honestly. Even though I really wanted to stay with Frank, he still didn't know I had imprinted on him too and he was acting strange. Maybe it was because he was in love with me and he didn't know I was in love with him too or maybe it was the shock from coming back from the dead.

The more we talked about going home, the more Frank started to hint that I could stay at his place for as long as I wanted. I haven't really opened up to him about it yet, but that was what I really wanted the most. It would seem like a wonderful idea to live together with Frank. To be honest, I had no idea how the dynamic between the two of us was going to be, but it couldn't go very wrong. I still haven't told him about me imprinting on him yet, so the clock was ticking to have 'the talk' with him very soon.

While we were traveling, I could see him shooting glances at me. But the second I tried to catch him, he looked away. I knew something was bothering him but I didn't know what or how to bring it up with him. He seemed so curious and confused at the same time.

We were silent for a while and it started to bug me. I didn't like awkward silences at all and I was still wondering about Hayley and how it all lead to the fact that she was turned into a vampire. I knew for sure Frank knew more about this, so I decided to ask him.

Frank, suprisingly, told me everything about how she came to visit him while he was still laying in his grave. How she had made a cut in her wrist and how she had pushed it against his lips. The taste of blood awakened him out of his deep comatose sleep and of how he couldn't stop sucking the red liquid out of her because of not drinking for so long. He was way too strong for Hayley to get away and since he started to bite her at some point, the vampire-venom ended up in her bloodstream. It was too late.

She turned into a vampire awfully fast. Frank has never seen someone change that quickly. Her transition was complete within one and a half hour. Frank felt really sorry for her and he wished he had bitten someone else, but she had woken him up and she brought him back to me so he owed her.

Hayley was still nowhere to be found, so looking for her was the only option. We couldn't leave her behind in a country she doesn't even know. Surely not now she was a newborn vampire. Since she is still so "young", she hasn't experienced all her new senses and cravings yet, something that can be very overwhelming when you acknowledge them for the first time. No, we had to find her and take her with us back home where we can get her the prober help she needs.

We first thought about going to the square where Frank and I met again for the first time. Which in retrospect wasn't really an option since she killed a few people there. If we would go and ask around for a girl with red flaming hair, we would be arrested ourselves. Nope, that was not an option.

"How are we ever going to find her? She ran off after she brought me to you!" Frank eventually said with a lot of frustration coming from his voice.

"I don't know. She can't be that far away, can she?" I answered him. I have to be honest, I was losing hope of finding her by the minute, but I tried to stay positive for Frank.

"I don't know. She is a grown-up, you would say she could handle her own business herself, won't she? I say we go home and wait until she gets back too. She is a vampire, she is very hard to kill, remember?" Frank answered me, still frustrated.

"I understand what you are saying, but still, it would be wrong to just leave her here. and by the way, she would've done the same for us. Why don't we first check the newspaper if there were any other unexplainable killings in the area. If there are, then we will go there to see if there are any signs of her. You can still read Italian, right?" I proposed a new idea to get Frank going. I was leaning to what he said, that we should just go home, but it just didn't feel right to me. I can remember I was pretty scared and overwhelmed by the thirst I had when I changed, so to me it just wasn't fair to abandon her. she needed us, if she wanted to or not.

"I never really quite learned to read Italian and if I still remember some words, it will be in old-Italian, but I can try." Frank hesitantly answered.

I grabbed the first newspaper I could find and gave it to Frank, with little success. The only article about some sort of murder or killing was about the one we witnessed on the square.

"… She ran off to the woods. There had been no sign of her since." Frank read to me.

"Okay then. Let's go to the woods." I answered.

Eventually we arrived at the place we had last seen her at the square but there was no sign of her. Our vampire senses were strong enough to locate a human or any other vampire in the area, but since it has been a few days, her trace was gone. Not even the slightest of her scent was in the air, there was no way we were going to find her if we continued like this.

"I don't know what's happening. If she was here I am sure I could pick up her track." Frank said after a while, frustrated of not finding a trace of Hayley.

"You are still recovering from coming back from the dead, don't beat yourself up over it." I smiled at him, while trying to reassure him. I could see that Frank was getting frustrated over the fact he still wasn't fully functioning. I tried to not make him feel bad about it, but he just couldn't get over the fact that he wasn't fully healed yet, but healing takes time.

After we tried to pick up a track of Hayley, we saw a guy standing on the opposite side of the square in front of us. The first thing that got my attention, was his long white, silver hair. He must've been around the age of 25 although he looked older. When he turned around, he was intensely staring at me and Frank. Although he looked young, he didn't have the look of a guy from that age. The gaze in his eyes was dark and angry, he must've seen some things a normal human being doesn't need to deal with. When I looked at his face a bit closer, there was a scar from the top of his right eyebrow all the way to the underside of his chin. The scar couldn't have been older than 4 months. It was healed for the most part, but it was a fresh scar. An uneasy feeling crept upon me and I decided I didn't trust him.

"Why is that guy staring at us?" Frank suddenly said, pulling me out of my own thoughts. He came to stand beside me and also looked at the strange man across the square.

"I-I don't know." I managed to get out. "He really creeps me out though." I added.

"Same here. Come on, Gee, let's get out of here. That guy gives me a really bad feeling."

We started to walk but we had no idea where we were going to. As we walked, I constantly got the feeling we were being watched and I didn't like it at all. Normally I'm not the kind of guy that gets scared easily, but this gave me an eerie feeling. When I looked at Frank, he looked almost confused. I couldn't really identify the emotions that spread across his face, although he looked the most like he was confused. Ever since we've imprinted on each other, sometimes Frank's feelings took over me. I felt what he was feeling at any given moment. Sometimes only when he was really confused or sad or even happy, but sometimes it also happened out of the blue. Sometimes it could really come in handy and sometimes it could take a toll on me. At this moment, I wished I knew what he was thinking.

We walked further without saying a word to each other. I was lost in my thoughts and Frank was lost in his.

Suddenly a rustling sound came up from behind us and a feeling of impending doom crept upon me. When I turned around, I could see the mysterious man from the square standing in front us. Frank, turning around immediately, was hissing at the man. I could only stare at the guy.

His face was now even more visible. Not only the scar looked more serious than I thought it would, the color of his eyes was also one I had not seen before. The color was an ice-blue with little specks of gold shattered around it. The color alone wasn't that strange, I had seen more people before with really light blue eyes, but this was different. This was piercing and mesmerizing instead of the friendly blue from most humans. Nope, this wasn't good.

Frank on the other hand, was positioning himself like he could attack the man at any given moment. Even to me he looked scary.

"What the actual fuck are you doing here?" Frank growled, his eyes turning red like a killer. His whole body was tense, like he could attack the guy immediately. He also seemed to know the man.

"Oh, come on, like you have no clue why I am here." the mysterious man answered, laughing darkly.

"Leave. Us. Alone." Was all Frank managed to get between animalistic growls and clenched teeth. I had to admit, I was looking out for Frank to keep him safe more than I was looking out for my own wellbeing. At this moment, he even scared me.

"Aww, Frankie," the man said, strangely condescending. Wait, Frankie? How did Frank know this guy? And next to that, I was the only one who called him Frankie. "-you really don't have a clue why I am here? Are you sure it has nothing to do with your little friend, hm? That pretty vampire with the flaming hair?

Hayley. Shit. Was she in danger?

Frank could only growl in response and even I got more tensed. I had expected much from her, more killings et cetera, but not some weird guy who was, to me, really intimidating.

"Where is she?" Frank asked him sternly.

"Who? Your little friend? Oh, we caught her murdering one of our teammates."


	20. Chapter 20

Gerard POV.

_"__GET HER! GET THAT LITTLE BITCH, YOU BLOODY MORONS!"_ The chief yelled as Hayley ran off. She had a lot of bloodlust, since she was only a newborn vampire. She didn't have the whole "dealing-with-your-cravings"-thing under control yet and that's how she got herself to bite a vampire-hunter and into big trouble.

Hayley was used to awkward situations. She was used to annoying creeps at the bar who wanted her number or wanted to do even more sinful things to her. She was used to the occasional old guy slapping her ass when she walked by. She was even getting used to be surrounded by vampires, if that wasn't already dangerously enough as a human. Yes, Hayley was used to a lot of things, but fighting off vampire hunters was one of the things she hadn't experienced yet.

After the little "incident" on the square with Frank and Gerard, she decided it was for the best to run away. She didn't want to burden Gerard nor Frank with her new cravings. Next to that, she wanted to experience what it was to be a vampire alone for a little bit, without being limited by others. She decided it was for the best, especially for Frank and Gerard, she didn't want to get them in more trouble than she probably already has. Maybe she would look for them in the future when she got her cravings more under control and when she could live amongst humans again.

She regretted nothing, though. Not a single one of them. Yes, of course she felt bad that she had taken a person's life, she was one of their kind once. But hey, a girl's got to eat.

_"__I WANT HER ALIVE!"_ Hayley heard yelling after her. She ran off into a dense forest where she almost couldn't see in which direction she was running. She was running at such a high speed that it almost seemed like she would clash against the trees. Dusk was already creeping up the land, making it dark and gloomy. The moon shone brightly in the sky and the autumn air was cold and crispy. As she ran, she heard twigs and leaves crack under her feet. Next to a horde of vampire hunters chasing her, there was nothing to be heard. Wind swiftly blew around her as she ran.

She thought she had it all under control, even when she was scared to death. She sincerely believed she could escape them, but then she took a misstep during running. She flew a few meters through the air and she landed on the cold, hard forest floor. Before she knew it, the vampire hunters were surrounding her in a circle, their weapons carefully pointed at her. There was no way in hell she could escape them now and she knew it damn well.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" one of them stepped forward, she assumed their leader. What made her pay attention were his fangs. She didn't understood the situation quite yet, what was a vampire supposed to do in a horde of vampire hunters while not being the hunted themselves?

"A newborn vampire, sir!" one of the other vampire hunters yelled from the back, not knowing exactly who it was. Hayley may be a vampire but her night vision wasn't completely developed yet.

"A newborn vampire…" he repeated, being lost in his thoughts. "I never guessed I would catch a newborn once again." He continued. And there it was again, the grin that showed his fangs. Hayley couldn't even answer. She had a mix of anger and curiosity boiling up inside her. Anger because she was caught by a bunch of men she didn't know, and definitely didn't trust, but curious to know who this strange, vampire-like man was.

The man looked at her for a few moments longer before he gave his men the order to capture her and take her to the headquarters.

"Oh, Frankie. Come on. You know where she is, right?"

The tension radiated off Frank. I could hear him gritting his teeth next to me. That strange guy using the nickname Frankie didn't sit well with me either.

"I told you to stay away from me." he practically growled.

"Oh, Frankie please," the man replied. "Don't tell me you don't know where your little vampire friend is, hm?"

"No, I fucking don't. And if I discover you have something to do with her disappearing then there will be hell to pay." He growled. From the corner of my eye I could see that Frank's hands balled up into fists. The skin around his knuckles already turning white.

The man then focussed on me. His icy-blue eyes had the intense gaze where he seemed to look right through me. He looked me up and down and then focussed on me again. A sly grin spread across his face and he focussed on Frank again.

"Who is this? Your new _pet_?" he sickeningly giggled. I couldn't answer to that because what was it even that Frank and I had? Even I didn't know. We kissed a few times, he confessed his imprinting on me, but that was it. He didn't even know about me imprinting on him.

I tried to ignore what the man was trying to say, even when he offended me, I didn't dare to answer back because I was afraid to get us in even more trouble than we already were. Some angry altercation was between them for a few moments before I snapped out of my thoughts.

"I'll leave you and your _pet_ alone for a bit." He said, and with that he swiftly ran away.

When the guy was eventually out of hearing distance, I looked at Frank. His knuckles were still white and his eyes were still blood red from anger.

"Okay, so. What was that all about?" I asked Frank confusedly, I didn't understand any of the events that were happening right now. Everything just went by so quickly that I sometimes didn't even know what we were doing or what we are looking for.

"He is an old acquaintance of mine. I'd rather forget him." Frank absentmindedly said. He didn't want to talk about it, the expression on his face explained it all.

I didn't believe him. Well, I did, I just didn't believe it was only an "acquaintance", as Frank told me he was. There had to be more. I'm sure they'd known each other in the past and it just didn't sit right with me.

It was quiet between us for a few moments. My thoughts raced through my head as I was overthinking what just happened. I decided to speak my mind.

"I don't believe you." I said to him, not looking him in the eyes. Frank threw his hands in the air out of surrender and he looked away from me.

"What is it that you don't believe?" Frank answered slightly irritated.

"I don't believe he is only just an acquaintance. Just tell me what he is."

"He is. And if you are so keen on knowing the truth, why won't you tell me the truth first about what _you_ are hiding?" Frank got really defensive. He came up to me and before I knew it he was bumping into me with his chest. The sad part was that I knew directly what he was talking about.

"Wh-what are you talking about?" I tried to deny it at first. Maybe he wasn't pointing on me imprinting on him, maybe he was pointing to a whole different direction of conversation. But clearly, I was wrong.

"For fucks sake, Gerard!" Okay, this was clearly about the imprinting.

"I can see you looking at me with _that_ look. I can even _feel_ it. Why don't you just admit it?! There was clearly a reason you kept visiting my grave when I was gone and you kissed me back even against what I believed!"

"Frank, I-I..." I couldn't manage to speak the words that were burning in my throat so badly. I was so terribly desperate to explain him how I felt. How I felt when I had seen him dying on front of me. How I felt when I visited his grave. How lonely I felt at night and how his visions came to visit me, but I just couldn't. It all suddenly was too much to take in and to process. I wasn't prepared for this conversation. Well, in some aspects I was, I just didn't expect it to take place already.

I don't remember everything that was said. He was furious and I was too. With Frank's anger, he came really close to me. I sometimes wonder how he was as a human when he was as angry as he is now. He was a lot less passionate, but on the other hand; most humans were. Vampires on the other hand were much more intense than humans could ever be. That's a level humans could never reach. Emotions get up to ten times as intense, even I sometimes ask myself how I can manage myself.

"You, Gerard Way, are a lying piece of shit!" and with that he pushed me against my chest. I almost tumbled over. Okay, if he wanted a fight, he could get one.

"Excuse me!?" I practically yelled. "You are the one who is holding back your history from me! Who the _fuck_ is that hunter and what is _he_ to _you_?"

"Me holding back? For fuck's sake, Gerard. Just tell me what's going on with you!"

At this moment, there were only inches in between us. With his yelling, he came closer and closer. Not that I minded, of course. His eyes were a fiery red as only Frank's eyes could be. If you were to put me in a room with vampires with only their eyes showing, I could pick out Frank's within seconds. His gaze was so deep I could drown in it and I wouldn't even care less.

There was an awkward silence between us. It didn't even had the right to be called an awkward silence. Yes, it was awkward, but it was also filled with tension and a magnetic force pulling me to him. I had to do something. I had to _say_ something. But apart from solving the problem, I wanted to blurt out that we had to find Hayley. And we had to, absolutely, she was in danger so we had to save her, but deep down I'd also liked it if me and Frank could finally solve whatever it was that's between us.

I broke the tension with a question that was burning inside me from the moment the hunter appeared.

"So. What are we going to do now? We don't want to get in any trouble ourselves but we have to find Hayley."

Frank stood there, his deep crimson eyes returning to their normal shade again. He confusedly looked at me, his eyes scanning my face, eager to find out if we were going to talk about _us_ again.

"Oh. Well, I suppose we will start to look for her, then." He turned his face away from me, almost refusing to let me see the expression on it.

He turned around to grab some supplies we had brought along with us, completely trying to avoid me. Frank stayed silent for a while.

"Gee?" he asked me, his voice croaky.

"Yeah, s'up?"

Frank turned around to face me and I got startled by what I saw. He was paler than he was normally and his eyes were turned black.

"I'm hungry." He said.

A hungry vampire was never good news. A hungry vampire was really bad news actually. I didn't know yet what it meant for me since vampires don't normally attack other vampires from hunger, only out of lust. Which could be possibly the case with me, since we imprinted on each other and all and not to forget that he bit me on the graveyard.

"Oh. Okay. Well, let's go out and hunt, shall we?" I asked hesitantly. His eyes were solely fixed on me and even though his eyes completely turned black, I could still clearly see he was fixing his whole being on me.

His posture was slumped and his moving was very slow and seductive. I didn't know why it still surprised me; he was the most beautiful vampire I had ever seen. He walked towards me, his pace agonizingly slow and his smile crooked. When he finally reached me, he looked at me with an intense black gaze. He put his arms around me and leaned his head on my shoulder.

"Gee?" he asked again. I could feel his breathing on my neck and it had a mesmerizing effect on me.

"Y-yes?"

"I'm _hungry_."

"O-oh." Was everything I managed to bring out. It was almost like I was paralyzed with my feet nailed to the ground. I was mesmerized by him and I believed he knew exactly what he was doing.

"Can I?" he whispered again, his lips softly grazing my neck. His fingertips grazed the other side of my neck, almost not resisting the temptation to bite me.

The air was tense, we could both feel that. He wanted me as much as I wanted him, but I couldn't let him bite me. That would mean my ending.

"Frank. No, you can't."

Although I wanted to give him everything there was to give, I just couldn't do this. If I let him bite me right now, there was no way to stop him. He would get stronger from my blood and I would get weaker from my blood loss. This only meant one very clear thing; it was time to hunt again.

He tilted his head to face me again, his gaze still predatory and lusting after me.

"Frank, listen; we need to hunt. You can't bite me, not in a state like this. Come on, we have to go."

When we reached the edge of town, the full moon was showing in the sky. The air was getting older and colder and that could mean two things; there was no one to be found or some poor soul was wandering outside in the cold all alone. I hoped it was the latter. I was getting hungry and thirsty myself so I wanted to go out anyway. Frank behaving like this was my queue to go.

We walked through an old building with houses made of limestone. The warmth was still radiating from the houses, which was nice while it was chilly like this.

Frank kept watching my every move, his gaze predatory. His eyes changed colour once in a while. They switched from hazel with red specks to completely scarlet to black. It was really fascinating to see, I had never seen such a reaction of thirst on a vampire. Although I wasn't scared of him, he intimidated me in the most sensual way possible. The more dangerously he looked, the more I wanted him. It was a rather weird attraction but it was the way it was and I could change nothing about that.

Suddenly Frank's eyes switched to black again. He quickly focused into a direction from a hospital.

"Do… do you smell that too?" Frank asked accusatory. Of course I did. It was the smell of blood.

"Of course I do." I answered.

"Do you see where that is coming from?" he said with a sly, almost evil grin. He pointed into the direction of a hospital. A good looking hospital. The lamps on the building were shining bright and visitors, nurses and doctors were walking in and out. There was absolutely no way we could go in there, snatch someone up and leave like nothing happened.

"Frank, are your eyes even working? Can you see how many people are over there?" I asked him, not knowing if he was being serious about this or not. Knowing Frank; he definitely was.

"We could go to the back and look if there is any food?" he smiled like a kid that was being caught doing something naughty.

I hated it when he referred to humans as food. I know damn well it's what they are to us, but they are still _people_, just like me and Frank. Well, not exactly like us, but we were once like them. Even after all this time, it still bugs me. Maybe it had to do with the fact that he had already been living or a few centuries when I changed. He had lost his touch with mortality.

"Frank, no. we will surely get caught." I hissed to him.

"So what? We are way stronger than they are. They don't even have a chance." Frank answered, getting more and more irritated with me. It might be from hunger, it might actually be me.

I decided to look if this plan was do-able or not. I quickly counted how many people there were and looked around for a bit. That's when I saw it. The morgue.

This was one of my less-favourite ideas, but blood was blood and Frank needed to feed now if we didn't want him to attack an innocent person. Or me.

"I have an idea." I got him by his arm and pulled him with me.

"Where are you taking me? The hospital is over there."

"Come on. I got a better plan where you can feed as much as you want without killing."

When we arrived to the morgue, we stood in front of a big, heavy door. It seemed like it was made of iron or some sort of metal. There was no way we could just barge in there.

"Okay know-all. What do we do now?" Frank asked.

I had to think for a few seconds. My plan might crumble all together. Then I had another plan, we had to climb through the window.

"Window!" I said while pointing upwards.

"Oh, well, that might actually work." Frank said, almost not believing it was true.

With one swift jump, Frank was already hanging in the window frame. He pulled himself up and within no time he was inside the building. I followed quickly after. This was actually easier than I eventually had thought.

Within seconds, we were inside. The atmosphere was eerie and very unpleasant. The TL lights were giving of a pale, almost light green colour. It gave off the effect of an abandoned asylum. The building was feeling rather cold, which wasn't weird if you think about the fact they store dead bodies in here. Right now it was only searching for the right room we had to be in.

We walked through a long corridor with a lot of doors. Every door had a little window on them and a big handle. We could see exactly what was in which room and that also meant we knew if we were standing in front of the right room. When walking for a few minutes, we found the room we had to be in. A chamber full of dead bodies.

That sounded really lurid. And it also was. In the room were storage places with in every one of them just one body. They were quite fresh. The putrid scent of death wasn't strongly present. At least, not yet.

Frank's eyes changed colour again. The scarlet red made place for pitch black and he lunged himself at one of the bodies.

"Hey there. Take it easy." I didn't get an answer. The only thing I did get was a predatory growl. At least he was feeding. At least it meant I was getting more and safer by the minute. At least, that was what I hoped.

My hunter instincts were also coming up to the surface. I could feel the thirst burning in my throat and my lips curling over my fangs. I could only see red.

I don't remember much from the feeding, only that the cold blood tasted a lot less tasty than blood from a living human being. It'll do, I won't complain, the only thing I am trying to say here is that I had tastier blood in the past. Fresh blood like a nice, hot cup of coffee on a rainy day in autumn. Cold blood, on the other hand, was lukewarm coffee that was made a few hours ago. Just to get the difference.

When I was done feeding, Frank had already started on another body. When I looked around the room, I suddenly realized he had already sucked three corpses dry. Frank had collapsed in the corner, still bent over a body sucking blood. He was sitting on the opposite corner of the room from where I was. When I stood up to slowly walk over to where he was, his eyes flitted open. I had to say I was a bit shocked by what I saw and heard. When he looked at me, his eyes were still pitch black like no amount of blood could satisfy him.

"Frank? What is happening to you?" I whispered, more asking myself what was going on than actually asking it to Frank. The only answer he could give me was a guttural growl.

"Frank?!"

When I called his name again, his eyes changed back to their normal colour for only a second, they went black again after that.

I could only stare at him, not knowing what to do. When he noticed I was looking at him, he let go of the body and let it drop on the ground. The thump-sound sounded much harder than it should but with the tension that was between us, everything seemed much more intense. A sly grin spread across his face and his black eyes were piercing. Somehow, I was getting drawn to him, I couldn't hold back from walking towards him.

"Oh, Gee, don't you see what you are doing to me?" he asked me. I don't know what it was, but something about him was _different_. I have seen him in many ways, from emotional to physical changes beyond my understanding, but this was very different than he was normally. The way he was right now was so sensual. So seductive. The way he looked at me did it for me, I wanted him and nothing more.

"Gee, let me bite you. _Please_." He practically whined.

"Frankie… I- no-. I stuttered. I wanted to give him my whole being if that was what he wished, but I just knew he wasn't being responsible and he definitely wasn't being himself right now.

"But I am so hungry. Please, Gee." He whined even more. This time, he slowly walked towards me and when he finally arrived, he placed his arms around my shoulders, he looked me in the eyes and licked his lips. I could practically feel the heat coming off from him.

"You won't lose me again. I will do anything to make you feel safe." He reassured me. His eyes flitted back to their normal colour from black for a moment.

My thoughts raced through my head. The last time he bit me, I got visions from his past life. That was surely something I absolutely did not want. Not only the experience from Frank drinking my blood was traumatizing, but also the visions I got were something I could not explain even if I had them for more than hundred times.

I shook myself out of my thoughts. The look in his eyes when I looked at him was very trusting, even though his eyes were pitch-black. He was a vampire. A bloodthirsty vampire. He could kill whole tribes within an hour if he wanted to, and I trusted him with my life.

I trusted him. I really did. And if this decision meant the end of my life, than that's the way had to be.


End file.
